# Swedish: torkar bort/ut



## zhandrine

Hello!
I have a lot of problems with this two adverbs. I need help with this sentence in swedish: Solen (eller soliga dagar) torkar *bort/ut* min ork. That means that when it is good weather I don't want to do anything and feel tired most of the time. Maybe there are other ways to say that, but I am kind of obsessed with "torka"

Thanks for helping!


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## brtkrbzhnv

I would have to say _bort_ is the right choice here. _Torkar ut_ I would use of the thing that is being dried, not the (metaphorical) liquid. This applies both in the transitive and the intransitive case: _Apelsinen torkar ut; solen torkar bort dess saft. Solen torkar ut apelsinen; dess saft torkar bort._


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## solregn

Torka bort = wipe off (a stain); get dried up, dry up (about a liquid, e.g.)
Torka ut = dry up, run dry (about a river, e.g.)
(Reference: http://www.norstedtsord.se/oversattning/engelska/?s=torka&l=SVEENG )

Your suggestion is more of a methopharical way to use 'torka' and less commonly heard among native Swedish speakers, I'd say... But that's not to say that it's wrong nor incomprehensible!  It sounds quite poetic to me, even.

I would use 'torka ut':
Solen / soliga dagar *torkar ut* min ork.

The reason is that 'torka ut' (as well as its adjective form, 'uttorkad') is in my opinion more commonly used about something that is inflicted on something / someone by circumstances, while 'torka bort' is an "active action". My point is that the sun _doesn't mean_ for your energy to run dry - but it's nevertheless a consequence of the heat  I hope my explanation doesn't come across as complete gibberish - it became a little metaphorical as well!


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## solregn

brtkrbzhnv said:


> I would have to say _bort_ is the right choice here. _Torkar ut_ I would use of the thing that is being dried, not the (metaphorical) liquid. This applies both in the transitive and the intransitive case: _Apelsinen torkar ut; solen torkar bort dess saft. Solen torkar ut apelsinen; dess saft torkar bort._



It's interesting to see that we don't competely agree on this! I'm looking forward to seeing what other Swedish speakers have to say 

Actually your post, brtkrbzhnv, made me think about the transitive and intransive aspect of the verb 'torka'. I'd say that the transitive use of *torka bort* is almost exclusively used in the sense 'wipe away'? And that the transitive use of *torka ut* would translate into the verb 'dry'? 

Consequently, I stand my grounds on that it should be solen *torkar ut* min ork because the image is that the sun dries up the energy (by its heat), not that the sun wipes the energy away (like a stain on a window)?


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## zhandrine

thanks both of you for your explanations!
_torka ut_ and _torka bort_ tie one-one now. 

I definitely meant it in a poetic way, i'm kind of a poet. Anyway, it's difficult to make up my mind. I think I will use _torka ut _since the sun, and its heat, etc. are really drying up my energy, my ideas and all of me. 
I still have doubts about _bort_ and _ut _and a lot of other adverbs, but I'll ask about that in another thread.

Thanks a lot brtkrbzhnv and solregn!!!!!!!!!!!


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## brtkrbzhnv

solregn said:


> Actually your post, brtkrbzhnv, made me think about the transitive and intransive aspect of the verb 'torka'. I'd say that the transitive use of *torka bort* is almost exclusively used in the sense 'wipe away'? And that the transitive use of *torka ut* would translate into the verb 'dry'?


Well, there's the popular children's song _Imse Vimse spindel_ (_Itsy Bitsy Spider_):
Imse Vimse spindel klättrar upp för trå'n 
 Ner faller regnet, spolar spindeln bort 
 Upp stiger solen, torkar bort allt regn 
 Imse Vimse spindel klättrar upp igen


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## Wilma_Sweden

Hehe, I thought of our favourite spider as well, but I think in that case the sun literally dries away the rainwater that's fallen, so less metaphorical. 

The way I see it, torka ut means to dehydrate: Solen har torkat ut min hud, så den fjällar.In other words, things that are dried this way, (uttorkad) are dehydrated and now contain less water than they normally do. If you must use torkar, I would definitely go for torkar bort, but I don't really like that verb at all in this context and would rather go for smälter bort, e.g. Solen smälter bort min ork.

bort: 2 - ut: 1 

/Wilma


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## jonquiliser

I'll chip in and add to the confusion . I agree with solregn; to my ears it should definitely be _torkar ut_. This sounds like it drains me of my energy, where as _torkar bort_ would be wipes away - and how on earth can energy be wiped away? On the other hand dries out sounds like something that can (and often does) happen to energy.  

2-2


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## Jao

I thought I'd sign up to help you out here. 

In this particular sentence my preference would probably be: _torka ut_, since that's (I believe) the feeling you're trying to get, it's sunny, hot and dry.

There are ways to rephrase it though (if you're willing to remove torka to, for instance, tyna), such as:

Min ork _tynar_ bort i solen.

I'm not sure it clears anything up but that's what I think.


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## solregn

I think the fact that we have different opinions on torka ut/bort is a sign that the best solution would be to rephrase the entire sentence... I have the impression that Jao's way of turning the sentence around, using "min ork" as a subject instead of an object, makes it sound a lot better:



Jao said:


> Min ork _tynar_ bort i solen.



 It stays with the image but is more idiomatic (litterally: "My energy fades away in the sunlight").

Wilma suggested smälta bort which I think works fine in the same kind of sentence: Min ork *smälter bort* i solen ("My energy melts away in the sunlight"). This solution is maybe even more true to what zhandrine wanted to express to begin with.


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## Wilma_Sweden

solregn said:


> I think the fact that we have different opinions on torka ut/bort is a sign that the best solution would be to rephrase the entire sentence... ... Wilma suggested smälta bort which I think works fine in the same kind of sentence: Min ork *smälter bort* i solen ("My energy melts away in the sunlight"). This solution is maybe even more true to what zhandrine wanted to express to begin with.


I agree, although I would argue that Solen smälter bort min ork sounds OK (to me, at least)! 

In any case, since we are dealing with metaphors, there should be a lot of artistic freedom, and as we have seen, native speakers have somewhat differing opinions about what 'sounds good' to them.  Torka is perhpas not the best verb to use in this context...

/Wilma


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## zhandrine

Hello and thanks everybody for posting in this thread!

At the very beggining _torka_ just popped up in my head, because i really feel _uttorkad_ seeing the sun shining and all that. But since my native language is spanish i have a lot of trouble trying to find out the way to express myself in e. g. swedish, english or even spanish plus the fact that i like metaphors a lot. It gets complicated. 

I'll have in mind _tyna_ and _smälta_ next time!

Thanks!


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## jonquiliser

Mhm, _smälta_ could work - though it might sound positive (as in fear, pain, sadness, tiredness... melting away). But this may be my personal perception only.


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## cocuyo

The Spanish verb that immediately comes to my mind is "agotar" (_estropear_ is perhaps more commonly used), which is something along the lines of "run out" (or wear out) in English. In Swedish, I would see it as something like "tömmer mig på kraft" eller "suger ut min kraft". 

<<Text in Spanish deleted - inaccessible to non-Spanish speakers. Also, only 4 lines of poetry permitted.>>

My 2 cents. 

/Urban


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