gärna
How gärna is used
Gärna means “gladly” or “with pleasure”, and it is how Swedes say they would like something: jag tar gärna en kopp kaffe, “I'd love a cup of coffee”. Ja, gärna! is the natural answer to an offer. The comparative is hellre (rather) and the superlative helst (preferably).
Meaning
gladly; willingly; easily
In Swedish: med nöje, villigt
Practise gärna
1 / 1What does gärna mean?
gärna in a sentence
- Vill du ha mer te? – Ja, gärna!Would you like more tea? – Yes, please!
- Jag hjälper gärna till.I'm happy to help.
- Ring gärna om du har frågor.Feel free to call if you have any questions.
- jag kommer gärnaI'd love to come
- elden slocknar gärna när veden är sura fire goes out easily if the wood is wet
- – Vill du klappa kaninen? – Ja, gärna!– Do you want to pet the rabbit? – Yes, please! (Yes, I would gladly pet the rabbit!)
- Hon äter gärna glassShe likes to eat ice cream
- Han svarar gärna på frågorHe is happy to answer questions
- Ska det regna hela tiden kan man lika gärna stanna hemmaIf it's going to rain all the time, you might as well stay home (then you are as happy to stay home)
- Köp gärna lite mjölk när du är på affärenIt would be great if you could buy some milk when you're at the store (note that the gärna here refers to the attitude of the speaker rather than the addressee)
Questions
What does gärna mean in English?
gärna means “gladly, willingly”.
Origin
From Old Norse gjarna, from Proto-Germanic *gernô (“willingly, gladly”), the adverbial form of *gernaz (“willing”).
Nearby common words
gärna is number 438 in our frequency list. These words come just before and after it.
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Sources: Folkets lexikon (CC BY-SA 2.5) and Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), edited by Lingolib. Recording: Wikimedia Commons. Browse the dictionary

