Ska
WiktionaryText
Etymology
Origin uncertain. Probably imitative of the crisp guitar sound; other suggestions include a contraction of American slang , or of .
Noun
ska
- A style of Jamaican dance music combining elements of Caribbean calypso and mento with American jazz and rhythm and blues.
Verb
ska
- will; denotes a promise or strong intent to perform a action in the future
- Jag ska göra det i morgon = I'll do that tomorrow
- shall, have to; be required to
- Nej, du ska göra det idag = No, you shall do it today.
Usage notes
- Infinitive, supine and the participles are rarely (if ever) used, and may be considered archaic. Skall is an older or more formal spelling for the present tense.
- kommer att may also be used to denote a future action, but while it denotes something inevitable (something absolutely certain); ska refers to something which is required, intended, or a promise. Compare also bör, which is a (very) strong recommendation, but not without possibility to wiggle out of; and måste (must) which is used when there is a compelling need to do something:
- Solen kommer att gå upp i morgon bitti = The Sun will rise tomorrow morning.
- Jag kommer att städa imorgon. = I will clean up tomorrow (There's no doubt about that)
- Jag ska städa imorgon. = I will (I promise to/I have been forced to promise to) clean up tomorrow.
- Jag måste städa imorgon. = I have to clean up tomorrow [since there are guests coming]
- Jag bör städa imorgon. = I should clean up tomorrow (=It would be good if I did some cleaning up tomorrow)