tös

See also: Appendix:Variations of "tos"

Swedish

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tös

Etymology

Related to Danish tøs, Norwegian taus, dialectal Swedish Tösa, dialectal Norwegian tysja (“naughty woman”), all said to be from an imitative word (Lautmalerei).^[1]

Pronunciation

Rhymes: -øːs

Noun

tös c

(colloquial) a girl (female child or young woman)
1. a lass, a lassie, a gal
  - 1961, “Te dans mä Karlstatösera [Till dans med Karlstadstöserna [[Going to] dance with the Karlstad gals]”, Rune Lindström (lyrics), Erik Uppström (music)‎^[2]performed by Sven-Ingvars:
    [dialectal, Värmländska, partially normalized]
    Det är lördag i dag och det gör mig hjärteglad,
    och mitt öga det blänker som sol i Karlstad stad.
    Det är Munter och Lustig och Rännare och jag,
    som på banan ska spänna krigarvadera [krigarvaderna].
    
    Det är sjunkande sol, det är klang i en fiol,
    och från dungarna luktar det löv och nattviol.
    Det är Lilli och Gully och Ingeborg där Nol,
    och de svansar och svänger med med sin söndagskjol.
    
    Hej, ropar pöjkera [pojkarna] och sprätter med klacken,
    stampar i backen, knycker på nacken.
    Tjo, vad det klappar under krigarefracken.
    Nu blir det dans med Karlstatösera [Karlstadstöserna].
    
    Hej, vad det sviktar uti dansbanans bräder,
    plankera [plankorna] rungar, björkruskor gungar.
    Tjo, vad det flaxar i volang och revärer.
    Schottisen går med Karlstatösera [Karlstadstöserna].
    It is Saturday today and it makes my heart happy,
    and my eye gleams [bit unidiomatic with singular in standard Swedish too, but literally translated] like the sun in Karlstad.
    It is Munter [Cheerful] and Lustig [Funny] and Rännare [Rider, archaic] [soldier names] and me,
    who are going to flex our warrior calves on the pavilion.
    
    There is setting sun, there is the sound of a violin,
    and from the groves it smells of leaves and butterfly orchid.
    It is Lilli and Gully and Ingeborg from [?] Nol,
    and they prance and swing their Sunday skirt.
    
    Hey, shout the boys and flick [with] their heel,
    stomp the ground, snap their head [neck].
    Woo [for lack of something more old-fashioned], how it throbs under my warrior coat.
    Now there will be a dance with the Karlstad gals.
    
    Hey, how the boards of the dance pavilion bend [how it bends in the boards of the dance pavilion],
    the planks resound, green birch boughs swing.
    Woo, how the flounce and lampasses flap [how it flaps in flounce and lampasses].
    There is a schottische with the Karlstad gals [the schottische goes with the Karlstad gals].

Usage notes

Not regionally limited like lass/lassie, but often a good match for tone when translating from English. Can sound like laying it on a bit thick in the other direction, unless fitting for the context. Plain flicka (“girl”) (tjej can sound too modern) also works as a translation for lass, leaning in less.

Declension

Declension of tös
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	tös	tösen	töser	töserna
Genitive	tös	tösens	tösers	tösernas

Synonyms

Derived terms

bondtös (“country girl, farm girl”)
tösabit (“lassie”)

References

^ “tös”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy]‎^[1] (in Swedish), 1937

Anagrams

söt, öst

[1] “tös”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy]‎^[1] (in Swedish), 1937

[1]