Turning verbs into nouns (-ning, -ing)
In Swedish, you can turn a verb into a noun by adding the suffix -ning or -ing to its stem. These nouns describe an action, an ongoing process, or the result of an action—very similar to English words ending in "-ing" or "-tion".
All nouns formed this way are en words. When you talk about a specific process, you will see them in their definite form ending in -en (e.g., -ningen).
This pattern is incredibly common for medical and technical procedures. For example, look at how the verb bedöva (to numb) becomes the noun bedövningen (the anesthesia / the numbing):
| I have to numb you now, but it goes fast. | Jag måste bedöva dig nu, men det går fort. |
| Does the anesthesia hurt? | Gör bedövningen ont? |
Common dental procedures
Many standard procedures at the dental clinic are named using this exact same pattern. From att borra (to drill) we get borrningen (the drilling), and from att laga (to fix/fill) we get lagningen (the filling).
| It is the drilling that makes the most noise. | Det är borrningen som låter mest. |
| What kind of material is in the filling? | Vad är det för material i lagningen? |
| Now we start with the cleaning. | Nu börjar vi med rengöringen. |
Actions and bodily processes
You will also hear these nouns used for actions you take or processes happening during the visit. For instance, the verb skölja (to rinse) becomes sköljningen (the rinsing):
| You can rinse your mouth now. | Du kan skölja munnen nu. |
| After the rinsing, we are completely finished. | Efter sköljningen är vi helt klara. |
Finally, natural bodily processes like bleeding (att blöda → blödning) and breathing (att andas → andning) follow the same rule.
| If the bleeding does not stop, we cannot continue. | Om blödningen inte slutar kan vi inte fortsätta. |
| Focus on the breathing while I work! | Fokusera på andningen medan jag jobbar! |