ju...desto

The More...the More

Level 2

Use ju ... desto to relate changes: Ju mer du övar, desto bättre blir du means “The more you practice, the better you become.”

How It Works

The ju...desto construction is used to express a parallel or proportional relationship between two things. It's the Swedish equivalent of the English 'the...the...' (e.g., 'the sooner, the better').

Structure:
The basic formula is:
Ju + [comparative], desto + [comparative]

Let's break down the word order in the clauses:
1. The ju-clause: This is a subordinate clause. A common pattern is Ju + comparative + subject + verb.... The comparative phrase can itself contain the subject, as in Ju fler som kommer, desto roligare blir det.
2. The desto-clause: This is the main clause. The phrase desto + comparative acts as the first element, which triggers the verb-second (V2) rule. The word order is: Desto + comparative + verb + subject...

Example Breakdown:
Sentence: Ju mer du läser, desto mer lär du dig. (The more you read, the more you learn.)

  • Ju mer du läser: Ju + comparative (mer) + subject (du) + verb (läser).
  • desto mer lär du dig: Desto + comparative (mer) + verb (lär) + subject (du) + object (dig).

Common Alternatives:
Both ju ... desto and ju ... dess are accepted: Ju förr, dess bättre (The sooner, the better). Ju ... ju also occurs, but many readers find it awkward; desto or dess is the clearer model for learners.

Examples (5)

  1. Ju mer du övar, desto bättre blir du.

    The more you practice, the better you become.

    Word by Word: The more you practice, the better become you.

  2. Ju snabbare vi går, desto tidigare kommer vi fram.

    The faster we walk, the earlier we will arrive.

    Word by Word: The faster we walk, the earlier arrive we.

  3. Ju äldre man blir, desto visare blir man.

    The older one gets, the wiser one becomes.

    Word by Word: The older one becomes, the wiser becomes one.

  4. Ju fler kockar, desto sämre soppa.

    The more cooks, the worse the soup.

    This proverb uses compact phrases without an expressed finite verb. It means that adding more cooks can make the result worse; do not treat it as a general permission to remove är from complete sentences.

  5. Ju mindre socker du äter, desto bättre mår du.

    The less sugar you eat, the better you feel.

    Word by Word: The less sugar you eat, the better feel you.

Common Mistakes

  • Forgetting the V2 inversion in the 'desto' clause.

    Ju mer jag läser, desto mer jag förstår.
    Ju mer jag läser, desto mer förstår jag.

    The second clause, starting with 'desto', is a main clause. The phrase 'desto mer' counts as the first element, so the verb ('förstår') must come in the second position, before the subject ('jag').

  • Using the base form of the adjective instead of the comparative.

    Ju snabb vi kör, desto fort kommer vi fram.
    Ju snabbare vi kör, desto fortare kommer vi fram.

    The 'ju...desto' structure requires the comparative form of adjectives or adverbs, such as 'snabbare' (faster) and 'fortare' (quicker/sooner), not the base forms 'snabb' and 'fort'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

ju...destoLevel 2The More...the More

Learn This First

To learn 'ju...desto', you first need to know how to form comparative adjectives (like 'bättre' or 'större') and understand that the first clause in this construction follows the word order of a subordinate clause.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

judesto