böra

See also: Appendix:Variations of "bora"

Nias

Etymology

Borrowed from Malay beras, ultimately from Proto-Austronesian *bəʀas.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɤra/

Noun

böra

1. rice (husked raw grain)

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish böra, from Old Norse byrja (“to befit”), from Proto-Germanic *gaburjaną.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /²bøːra/, [²bœ̞ːra]
• Rhymes: -²øːra

Verb

böra (present bör, preterite borde, supine bort, imperative bör)

1. should, ought to

   Hon bör sitta i båten.

   She should be sitting in the boat.

   Det borde fungera.

   That should work.

   Du borde verkligen utnyttja möjligheten att förlänga avtalet.

   You should really use the opportunity to extend the agreement.

Usage notes

• Böra indicates a recommendation or probability, or obligation perceived from the point of the speaker. This differs from måste which signifies an absolute requirement or even force. The difference between present tense bör and past tense borde is not so much of tense, but of the strength of the request. Borde is less strong and perceived as more polite, and is more like making a suggestion that the subject is free to ignore. In the case of statements of reality such as "Det borde fungera", borde indicates more uncertainty than bör; the speaker is not sure if it will work, but believes it will.
• See also ska, which can also be used for "should have" in the past tense skulle.

Conjugation

Conjugation of böra (weak)

	active		passive
infinitive	böra		—
supine	bort		—
imperative	bör		—
imper. plural1	bören		—
	present	past	present	past
indicative	bör	borde	—	—
ind. plural1	böra	borde	—	—
subjunctive2	böre	borde	—	—
present participle		börande
past participle		—

¹ Archaic. ² Dated. See the appendix on Swedish verbs.

Related terms

• vederböra

References

• “böra”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “böra”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)

Anagrams

• bröa