Jump to Nouns, Prepositions, Verbs, Questions, Exercise
Lesson 2
Vocabulary
| och [ok] | and |
| inte [*inte] | not |
| Sverige ['sverje] | Sweden |
| här [hä:r] | here |
| där [dä:r] | there |
| nu [nu:] | now |
| idag [i'da:g] | today |
| lite [*li:te] | a little |
| bara [*ba:ra] | only / just |
| mycket [*myke(t)] | a lot |
| svenska [*svenska] | Swedish |
| England ['egland] | England |
| engelska ['egelska] | English |
| Hur står det till? [hu:r stå:r de til] |
How do you do? |
| pengar ['pegar] | money |
| eller ['eler] | or |
In English, German and French e.g., the definite form of a noun is constructed by a definite article. The definit form of the noun table for example, is obtained by adding the - the table, German - Der Tisch, French - La table etc.
In Swedish, the definite form is obtained by attaching a suffix (ending) to the noun. The suffixes are -(e)n for common genders and -(e)t for neuters. The e is often dropped when the noun ends in a vowel.
Example:
| The noun | sg. indefinite | sg. definite |
| book | en bok | boken |
| girl | en flicka | flickan |
| boy | en pojke | pojken |
| rose | en ros | rosen |
| house | ett hus | huset |
| table | bord | bordet |
| eye | öga | ögat |
- As you can see, you drop the e if the noun ends with a vowel. The same as to common gender nouns ending with an unstressed -r or -l.
Example:
- Some neuters ending with an unstressed -er or -el drop their e preceding the r or t.
en 'djungel - djungeln
en 'doktor - doktorn
Example:
- Some nouns double their last consonant so as to keep their pronunciation.
ett 'fönster - fönstret
ett 'kapitel - kapitlet (meaning chapter)
Example:
ett rum - rummet
I will write the full forms when we come across a noun that differs from the rule.
Pronunciation
Nouns normally keep their stress in the definite form.
Example:
*flicka - *flickan
ho'tell - ho'tellet
'bok - 'boken
Some more nouns
| ett hus [hu:s] | house |
| en teve [*te:ve] | television |
| mat (c.g.) [ma:t] | food |
| vatten (neu.) ['vaten] | water |
| ett land [land] | country |
| en stad [sta:d] | city |
| en affär [a'fä:r] | shop |
| en station [sta'son] | station |
| ett huvud [*hu:vud] | head |
| en arm [arm] | arm |
| ett ben [be:n] | leg / bone |
| en bil [bi:l] | car |
| en båt [bå:t] | boat |
| ett tåg [tå:g] | train |
| ett flygplan [*fly:gpla:n] | plane |
| på [på:] | on |
| i [i:] | in |
| från [frå:n] | from |
| av [a:v] | of / by |
| om [åm] | about |
| till [til] | to |
| med [me:d] | with |
| gå (i) [gå:] | to go |
| göra (i) [*jö:ra] present tense gör |
to do / to make |
| bo (2) [bo:] | to live |
| ligga (i) [*liga] | to lie, be situated |
| det finns (i) [de: fins] (present tense) |
there is / are |
| svänga (2) [*sväga] | to turn |
| förstå (i) [fö'stå:] | to understand |
In English, you often form a question by rewriting with do. That
is NOT possible in Swedish. Instead, you reverse the word order (as
in English Are you fine?). Often you use a question word as well.
Question words
| vem [vem] vilka ['vi(l)ka] |
who (sing.) who (plur.) |
| vad [va:d] | what |
| var [va:r] | where |
| vart [vat] | where (to) |
| hur [hu:r] | how |
| vilken / vilket ['vi(l)ken] / ['vi(l)ket] |
what / which |
| varifrån [va:ri'frå:n] | where...from |
| varför ['varfö:r] | why |
Examples:
| Varifrån är du? | Where are you from? |
| Vad heter hon? | What is her name? |
| Vem är du? | Who are you? |
| Vilka är de? | Who are they? |
| Var bor du? | Where do you live? |
| Vart går du? | Where are you going (to)? |
| Varför gör vi så? | Why do we do like that? |
| Vilket land bor ni i? | What country do you live in? |
| Vilken stad bor ni i? | What city do you live in? |
| Köper du bollen? | Do you buy the ball? |
Exercise - Translate the following sentences into Swedish
Are you from Sweden?
Does he love food?.
Where is the house situated?
How do I go to the station?
Is there a shop here?
I am from England.
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