växa is the Swedish verb "to grow," and it is the verb you reach for whenever something gets bigger on its own — a child, a tree, a town, a problem. It is a Group 2 weak verb built on the -x stem, so its principal parts run växa – växer – växte – växt. The single most important thing to learn is that växa is intransitive: things grow by themselves. When you grow or cultivate something deliberately, Swedish switches to a different verb, odla.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Preteritum (past) | Supine | Imperative | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| växa | växer | växte | växt | väx | Group 2 (weak), -te |
växa belongs to Group 2, the weak class whose past ends in -de or -te. Because the stem ends in the voiceless cluster -x (= /ks/), the past takes the voiceless -te ending: växte, not "växde." The supine is växt, so the perfect is har växt. The imperative drops the -a: väx. There is no vowel change — that is what makes it weak rather than strong.
Mitt barn växer så fort just nu.
My child is growing so fast right now. växer — present, no vowel change.
Träden växte snabbt det blöta året.
The trees grew quickly that wet year. växte — past, -te ending after the x.
Staden har växt med tjugo tusen invånare.
The city has grown by twenty thousand inhabitants. har växt — perfect, supine växt.
Use 1: present, past and perfect
The three tenses follow the principal parts directly. The present växer covers both "grows" and "is growing." The past växte keeps the -te spelling because of the x. The perfect is har växt, the pluperfect hade växt.
Håret växer ungefär en centimeter i månaden.
Hair grows about a centimetre a month. Present växer.
Köerna växte under hela eftermiddagen.
The queues grew throughout the afternoon. växte — simple past.
Oron hade växt sig stor innan beskedet kom.
The worry had grown large before the news came. hade växt — pluperfect; växa sig stor = grow large.
Use 2: the intransitive heart — växa vs odla
This is the contrast that matters most. växa is intransitive: nothing causes the growing, the subject simply grows. You cannot "växa tomater" — that would mean the tomatoes are the ones doing the growing. To express "grow / cultivate something," meaning you make plants grow, Swedish uses the transitive verb odla.
Tomaterna växer fint i växthuset.
The tomatoes are growing nicely in the greenhouse. Intransitive — the tomatoes grow by themselves.
Vi odlar tomater på balkongen.
We grow tomatoes on the balcony. Transitive odla — we make them grow.
Min farfar odlade potatis och morötter, och allt växte enormt.
My grandfather grew potatoes and carrots, and everything grew enormously. odlade (cultivated) vs växte (grew on its own).
English hides this split because "grow" does both jobs ("the tree grows" / "I grow trees"). Swedish forces you to choose: did the thing grow by itself (växa) or did someone make it grow (odla)?
Use 3: växa upp and växa ur
växa takes two very common particles. växa upp means "grow up" (spend one's childhood), and växa ur means "grow out of" (clothes, a habit, a phase).
Jag växte upp på en liten gård i Dalarna.
I grew up on a small farm in Dalarna. växa upp = grow up.
Han har växt ur alla sina skor igen.
He's grown out of all his shoes again. växa ur = grow out of.
Förhoppningsvis växer hon ur den här trotsåldern snart.
Hopefully she'll grow out of this defiant phase soon. växa ur — figurative.
Use 4: växande — the deverbal participle
The present participle växande ("growing") is everywhere in writing, especially before abstract nouns: ett växande problem "a growing problem," en växande oro "a growing concern." It is an adjective and does not change form.
Det finns ett växande intresse för svenska bland unga.
There's a growing interest in Swedish among young people. växande as adjective.
Företaget mötte en växande efterfrågan på sina produkter.
The company faced growing demand for its products. växande efterfrågan.
Use 5: the strong relic vuxen and the noun tillväxt
växa is officially weak today, but it carries a fossil of its old strong past participle: vuxen "grown-up, adult." This is the form växa would have had as a Group 4 strong verb (väx – vox – vuxit), and it survives only as an adjective and noun: en vuxen "an adult," vuxna "adults," uppvuxen "raised, grown up (somewhere)." The matching noun built on the weak stem is tillväxt "growth (economic, biological)," and uppväxt "upbringing, childhood." So one verb radiates into both a weak supine (växt) and a strong-relic participle (vuxen).
Du måste vara arton år för att räknas som vuxen.
You have to be eighteen to count as an adult. vuxen — the strong-relic participle.
Jag är uppvuxen i en liten by utanför Umeå.
I was raised in a small village outside Umeå. uppvuxen — 'grown up (somewhere)'.
Den ekonomiska tillväxten saktade in förra kvartalet.
Economic growth slowed last quarter. tillväxt — the noun from växa.
Common Mistakes
❌ Jag växer tomater i trädgården.
Incorrect — växa is intransitive; you can't 'grow' tomatoes with it. To cultivate plants, use odla.
✅ Jag odlar tomater i trädgården.
I grow tomatoes in the garden.
❌ Barnet växde tre centimeter.
Spelling slip — after the x the past ending is -te, not -de: växte.
✅ Barnet växte tre centimeter.
The child grew three centimetres.
❌ Träden har växte mycket i år.
Wrong form after har — you need the supine växt, not the past växte.
✅ Träden har växt mycket i år.
The trees have grown a lot this year.
❌ Jag växte upp tre barn.
Wrong verb — to raise children is uppfostra; växa upp means 'grow up' (what the children themselves do).
✅ Jag uppfostrade tre barn. / Tre barn växte upp här.
I raised three children. / Three children grew up here.
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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.
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