påverka means "to affect" or "to influence." It is built from the particle på ("on") plus verka, but the two have fused into a single Group 1 verb — and, crucially, the meaning is not simply "verka with på." Where bare verka means "to seem," påverka means "to act on / have an effect on" something. It is one of the highest-frequency verbs in Swedish news, science writing, and everyday cause-and-effect talk, and it is reassuringly regular: påverka – påverkade – påverkat, with every form derived by rule.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Preteritum (past) | Supine | Imperative | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| påverka | påverkar | påverkade | påverkat | påverka | Group 1 |
This is the model Group 1 pattern, identical to tala: present is infinitive + -r (påverkar), past adds the full -ade (påverkade), supine ends in -at (påverkat), and the imperative is the bare stem, the same as the infinitive (Påverka!). There is no stem change and no vowel shift. The agreeing past participle is påverkad / påverkat / påverkade ("affected"). Mind the å in every single form — it is på, never pa.
Vädret påverkar mitt humör mer än jag vill erkänna.
The weather affects my mood more than I want to admit. påverkar — present, takes a direct object.
Beslutet påverkade tusentals familjer.
The decision affected thousands of families. påverkade — Group 1 past with -ade.
Pandemin har påverkat hela branschen.
The pandemic has affected the whole industry. har påverkat — perfect, supine -at.
Use 1: present, past and perfect
All three tenses come straight from the principal parts. Present påverkar covers "affects" and "is affecting." The past is the full påverkade. The perfect is har påverkat; the pluperfect is hade påverkat. Because it is Group 1, there is never a bare -de (påverkade, not påverkde).
Räntan påverkar hur mycket vi kan låna.
The interest rate affects how much we can borrow. Present påverkar.
Reklamen påverkade barnen mer än föräldrarna trodde.
The advertising influenced the children more than the parents thought. påverkade — simple past.
Klimatförändringarna hade redan påverkat skördarna.
Climate change had already affected the harvests. hade påverkat — pluperfect. (formal)
Use 2: påverka is transitive — it needs a direct object
The single most important fact about påverka is that it is transitive: it takes a direct object, the thing being affected. The structure is X påverkar Y — "X affects Y." You cannot leave Y out the way English sometimes lets you say "it has an effect." There is always something acted upon.
Sömnbrist påverkar koncentrationen.
Lack of sleep affects concentration. X (sömnbrist) påverkar Y (koncentrationen).
Vad du äter påverkar hur du mår.
What you eat affects how you feel. The object is the whole clause hur du mår.
Kan en enskild röst verkligen påverka valet?
Can a single vote really influence the election? påverka + object valet.
Use 3: bli påverkad — to be affected / under the influence
The participle påverkad does double duty. With bli or vara it forms the passive "be affected": bli påverkad av något. On its own, påverkad is also the standard everyday word for "under the influence" — drunk or high — as in köra påverkad ("drive under the influence").
Många blev djupt påverkade av nyheten.
Many were deeply affected by the news. blev påverkade — passive, plural agreement.
Det är olagligt att köra påverkad.
It is illegal to drive under the influence. påverkad — the 'intoxicated' sense.
påverka vs verka — the false-friend trap
This is the pitfall English speakers fall into. verka (Group 1, verkar – verkade – verkat) means "to seem / appear": Han verkar trött ("He seems tired"). påverka means "to affect / influence." They look related, but they are not interchangeable: Han verkar trött and Han påverkar trött are worlds apart — the second is simply ungrammatical. If you can replace the English with "seems," use verka; if you can replace it with "has an effect on," use påverka.
Hon verkar nöjd med resultatet. (seem)
She seems pleased with the result. (seem) — verka, no object.
Resultatet påverkar hennes framtid. (affect)
The result affects her future. (affect) — påverka, with object.
The noun: en påverkan
The verb's noun is en påverkan — "influence / impact." It is a common-gender noun used mostly in the singular (mänsklig påverkan på klimatet, "human impact on the climate"), and it pairs with the preposition på: påverkan på något, "impact on something."
Forskarna mäter människans påverkan på naturen.
Researchers measure humanity's impact on nature. en påverkan på — the noun. (academic)
Common Mistakes
❌ Beslutet påverkade. (no object)
Incomplete — påverka is transitive and needs something affected: Beslutet påverkade många.
✅ Beslutet påverkade många.
The decision affected many.
❌ Han påverkar trött. (påverka for 'seem')
Incorrect — 'seem' is verka, not påverka. påverka means 'affect/influence.'
✅ Han verkar trött.
He seems tired.
❌ Vädret paverkar humöret. (missing å)
Incorrect — it is på, with å: påverkar, never *paverkar.
✅ Vädret påverkar humöret.
The weather affects the mood.
❌ Pandemin har påverkade branschen. (past for supine)
Incorrect — after har you need the supine påverkat, not the past påverkade.
✅ Pandemin har påverkat branschen.
The pandemic has affected the industry.
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Start learning Swedish→Related Topics
- Using the Verb ReferenceA2 — How to read the single-verb reference cards and the principal-parts citation system that underpins them. Every Swedish verb is cited as a short chain — infinitive – present – preteritum – supine – (past participle) — because every other form is derivable from those parts. This page decodes one weak verb (tala – talar – talade – talat) and one strong verb (skriva – skriver – skrev – skrivit – skriven), explains the conjugation-group labels (1/2/3/4), and gives a key to everything on a card.
- The Four Conjugation GroupsA2 — Swedish verbs sort into four conjugation classes, identified not by the present tense but by the PAST (preteritum) and supine: Group 1 (talar/talade/talat), Group 2 (ringer/ringde/ringt, köper/köpte/köpt), Group 3 (bor/bodde/bott), and Group 4, the strong verbs (skriver/skrev/skrivit) that change their vowel. Group 1 is so dominant and regular that every new and borrowed verb joins it — so treat it as the default and memorise only the closed list of strong verbs.
- verka (to seem, appear)B1 — verka is a Group 1 verb meaning 'to seem, appear' — an evidential verb: Det verkar bra ('it seems good'), Du verkar trött ('you seem tired'). It takes an adjective directly or a som om / att-clause, and contrasts with se ut, which is reserved for physical appearance.