kappsäck

Calque of German Mantelsack, from kappa (“coat”) +‎ säck (“sack”). First attested in 1482.

kappsäck c

1. a carpetbag (or similar bag made of for example soft leather, typically with a top rim that splits open wide)
2. a portmanteau (traveling case or bag, often opening into two equal sections)

   packa pappas kappsäck

   pack dad's portmanteau [a tongue twister]

3. a suitcase, a bag (more generally, when kappsäck is used for rhetorical flair – see usage notes)

   packa kappsäcken och lämna allt bakom sig

   pack one's bags [idiomatically] and leave everything behind

4. (idiomatic, in "i kappsäck") out of a suitcase (constantly traveling, staying briefly in several places)

   bo/leva i kappsäck

   live out of a suitcase (be constantly on the move)

   livet i kappsäck

   life out of a suitcase (life on the move)

Somewhat old-fashioned connotations. Sometimes used instead of resväska (“suitcase, travel bag”), väska (“bag”), or the like just for rhetorical flair.

• kappsäck in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• kappsäck in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)
• kappsäck in Svenska Akademiens ordbok (SAOB)