Guide to verbs in Swedish

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Guide to verbs in Swedish
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13/6/2011
Claire Williams
Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 3
Swedish Verbs ............................................................................................................................... 3
Forms ............................................................................................................................................ 4

Imperativ and Stem ............................................................................................................ 4

Infinitiv............................................................................................................................... 4

Presens .............................................................................................................................. 4

Preteritum or Imperfekt ..................................................................................................... 4

Supinum............................................................................................................................. 4
Help verbs – Hjälpverb................................................................................................................... 5
Groups of Verbs ................................................................................................................................ 5
Group 1 ..................................................................................................................................... 6
Group 2 ..................................................................................................................................... 7
Group 3 ..................................................................................................................................... 8
Group 4 – Verbs with -it endings when used after hade or har or haft........................................ 9
Group 4 – Irregular Verbs......................................................................................................... 11
The end! .......................................................................................................................................... 11
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Introduction
Grammar is one of the most daunting things one can try to master when learning a foreign language.
In your mother tongue it is the sort of thing that you ‘just know’ as you can recognise what sounds
right and wrong and how things work. In a second language this is not the case and thus grown up,
well educated people can start to question their own intelligence when faced with what should be
basic knowledge and techniques. I realise this might not be the same for everyone but this was my
experience in any case and so I made it my mission to try and help the learning of verbs in Swedish
that bit easier for people.
When I first started to learn Swedish it seemed to start very well, that was when I was learning
phrases and words and not having to think about grammar, sentence formation or anything else
difficult. So I was happily learning away and then I hit VERBS and my little confident bubble of
learning crumbled around my ears. Suddenly there were different forms of the same word that I
should be using and inserting and working out which to use and how to use them.
Learning this sort of thing when I was in school just kind of passed me by, I could never remember
terms for words and had no idea what they meant even if I could – it was all I could do to remember
that verbs were ‘doing’ words! I remembered when learning French at school there were tenses and
things to remember and think about but quite frankly I relied on remembering phrases rather than
rules which got me through.
In Swedish I had no chance of working out my imperative from my infinitive and I was in a circle of
misery, no matter how it was explained to me I just couldn’t get it to make sense or stick in my head.
Then one day a teacher at my SFI course wrote a few words on my piece of grammar paper and it all
clicked into place. She explained what words would be used with the verb forms and BANG it all
became “translatable” in my head.
Swedish Verbs
There are 4 groups of verbs and I will try to go through each one and explain, as best as I can and as
clearly as I can how each one works and how each is identifiable. However, the step that most of
the teaching misses out is this one – I am going to explain exactly what each of the forms mean and
when they are used so you can then work out which form of the verb you require in the first place!
This isn’t meant to be patronising, I am just assuming no prior knowledge of things like this as it
really confused me when trying to learn myself. Feel free to skip this section if you are happy with
the tenses and their forms.
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Forms
When learning verbs you will be presented with tables upon tables of words in their varying forms,
this is what those forms are and how to identify when to use them.





Imperativ and Stem – This is quite simply when you give someone an order. Imagine you
yelling this at someone and watching them act. SPRING! KÖR! - RUN! DRIVE! Etc. Often
these are actually written with exclamation points. The ‘imperitiv’ also creates the STEM of
the verb (the bit that never changes) and is in every form – this is actually quite important so
pay attention to the ‘imperativ’ even if you don’t want to yell orders at someone!
Infinitiv – This is the basic form of the verb, so for example ‘to run’ or ‘to walk’ which is
what one does – for example “I like to dance” is “Jag tycker om att dansa”. In Swedish this
form is used after something called “help” words, these are words like ‘ska’ (Jag ska dricka
cola – I will drink coke). It does not define when you shall do something just that you will at
some point. There are other help verbs which can be used instead of ‘ska’ and these just
need to be learned and recognised as help verbs as they pop up a lot. I will talk about those
shortly.
Presens – The present tense is describing what you are doing right now and would most
often be equivalent of –ing words. Swedish generally uses fewer words than English to
describe what they are doing – for example “solen skiner” would mean “The sun is shining”.
Preteritum or Imperfekt – This is the past tense so think of yesterday or ‘igår’ in Swedish.
So if you just want to say “I drank too much” then it would be “Jag drack för mycket”. For
those of you who are into English grammar this is equivalent of the Imperfect Past Particle.
This always confused me as there are the two potential and equally common names for the
same form - the ‘preteritum’ and the ‘imperfekt’ – as a warning you are likely to come across
them both.
Supinum – This is also a past tense but this is used when you say you “have” done
something. For example “I have drunk too much” would become “Jag har druckit för
mycket” So you use this form when you use the word “har, hade or haft” to describe your
actions. Technically when you use “hade” and then the supinum it can be known as the
preteritum perfekt (or the perfect past participle in English) however I am not going to go
into this as so far I have found no need to do so.
So in short remember this –
Order! / Stem
Imperitiv
Ska or help verb
Infinitiv
-ing or now
Presens
Igår or past
Preteritum / Imperfekt
Har, hade, haft
Supinum
OK so if you can get your head round that then it should help you out with the following sections…
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Help verbs – Hjälpverb
You will come across these a lot when learning Swedish as they help decipher word order in
sentences and things. The best idea to my mind is just to learn them off by heart as early as
possible and recognise them as help verbs, even if you don’t quite understand what that means yet!
The most common one and the one I use as an example below is “ska” meaning “will”.
får
Borde
Behöver
Hinner
Ska
Vill
måste
Brukar
kan
Be allowed or get (is my interpretation of the most commonly used version)
Should
Need
Reach / manage / have time to
Will
Want
Must
Usually
Can
Groups of Verbs
In Swedish verbs come in 4 groups, there is no reason for this other than so you can work out how
to “bend” the verb into the different forms, as explained above. Try not to get too hung up on this
as it will get easier the more practice you get.
Remember the stem is made up from the imperitiv (this is actually quite important) – the ending of
each tense depends largely on the stem and the stem NEVER changes between tenses (until we hit
group 4), it is always the beginning of the verb with different things tagged on the end.
Basically the group to which a verb belongs defines how that verb is formed in the different tenses; a
brief breakdown is as such –
Order / Stem
Group 1
Group 2a
Group 2b
Group 3
Imperitiv
Ska or help -ing or now
verb
Infinitiv
Presens
Tvätta!
behöv!
Sök!
Bo!
tvätta
behöva
söka
bo
tvättar
behöver
söker
bor
Igår or past
Preteritum
Imperfekt
tvättade
behövde
sökte
bodde
/
Har,
hade,
haft
Supinum
tvättat
behövt
sökt
bott
Group 4 has been left off this table as it is a bit of a law unto itself as you will see further down so
believe me when I say you are just going to have to buckle down and get to know them individually!
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Group 1
The stem (or imperitiv) of this verb ALWAYS ends in an –A. It is also true that the infinitive also
always ends in an A or said another way, whenever ska is used the word that follows ends in an A
e.g. “Jag ska titta på teve” – “I will watch TV”. I personally find it difficult to recognise verbs in this
way so I always bend them in my head to be the supinum or preteritum, as above as they sound
more different to each other and is easier to recognise. So in short:





The imperitiv or Stem always ends in -A
When following “ska” the word ends in an -A
When actively doing something right now it ends in -AR
When you did something previously the ending is -ADE
When you HAVE done something previously the ending is -AT
Order / Stem
Imperitiv
Ska or help verb
Infinitiv
-ing or now
Presens
Titta!
titta
tittar
Betala!
betala
betalar
Studera!
studera
studerar
Jobba!
jobba
jobbar
Prata!
prata
pratar
Parkera!
parkera
parkerar
Arbeta!
arbeta
arbetar
Städa!
städa
städar
Bada!
bada
badar
Duscha!
duscha
duschar
Tala!
tala
talar
Fråga!
fråga
frågar
Svara!
svara
svarar
Stanna!
stanna
stannar
Lämna!
lämna
lämnar
Hämta!
hämta
hämtar
Börja!
börja
börjar
Sluta!
sluta
slutar
Hälsa!
hälsa
hälsar
So to translate one of the examples above with examples:
Imperitiv
Infinitiv
Presens
Titta!
titta
Jag ska titta
I am going to look
tittar
Jag tittar
I am looking
LOOK!
Igår or past
Preteritum
Imperfekt
tittade
betalade
studerade
jobbade
pratade
parkerade
arbetade
städade
badade
duschade
talade
frågade
svarade
stannade
lämnade
hämtade
började
slutade
hälsade
Preteritum
Imperfekt
tittade
Jag tittade
I looked
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/
Har, hade, haft
Supinum
tittat
betalat
studerat
jobbat
pratat
parkerat
arbetat
städat
badat
duschat
talat
frågat
svarat
stannat
lämnat
hämtat
började
slutat
hälsat
/
Supinum
tittat
Jag har tittat
I have looked
Group 2
This group is a little more complex as there is 2a and 2b as you can see from the table above. This
group is identifiable from Group 1 because the stem ALWAYS ends in a CONSONANT. If this
consonant happens to be an R (eg Kör) then you do not add anything in the ‘presens’ tense, these
are often short verbs like köra, höra, göra.
The group 2b comes about when specific consonants are found at the end, this then only affects the
peritium tense. These consonants are P, T, K, S, X. If the stem ends in one of these consonants then
the past tense of this will end in –te instead of –de.
So the basic rules for group 2 are:





The imperitiv or stem always ends in a CONSONANT
When following “ska” they always end in a –A
When doing something right now it ends in –ER (unless the stem ends in R in which case you
do nothing to it)
When you did something previously you add –DE (unless the stem ends in P T K S X in which
case you add –TE instead)
When you HAVE done something previously you add –T
Order / Stem
Imperitiv
Ska or help verb
Infinitiv
-ing or now
Presens
Behöv!
Behöva
behöver
Bygg!
Bygga
bygger
Fyll!
Fylla
fyller
Följ!
Följa
följer
Gäll!
Gälla
gäller
Höj!
höja
höjer
Ring!
ringa
ringer
Släng!
slänga
slänger
Stäng!
stänga
stänger
Ställ!
ställa
ställer
Sväng!
svänga
svänger
Väg!
väga
väger
Äg!
äga
äger
Hör!
höra
hör
Kör!
köra
kör
Säg!
säga
säger
Sök!*
söka
söker
Sätt!*
sätta
sätter
*Examples of group 2b verbs, see the difference?
Igår or past
Preteritum
Imperfekt
behövde
byggde
fyllde
följde
gällde
höjde
ringde
slängde
stängde
ställde
svängde
vägde
ägde
hörde
körde
sade
sökte
satte
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/
Har, hade, haft
Supinum
Behövt
Byggt
Fyllt
följt
Gällt
höjt
ringt
slängt
Stängt
ställt
svängt
vägt
ägt
hört
kört
sagt
sökt
satt
Group 3
This is a relatively small group of verbs as they are the bulk of the short verbs. They are identifiable
as they have long vowels sounds in the stem which are then shortened in the two past tenses. The
stem can end in either a vowel or a consonant so these are harder to spot.
Here we go with the rules:





The ‘imperitiv’ or stem can end in anything but is a short word with a loooong vowel sound
When following “ska” they take the same form as the stem
When doing something right now you add a –R
When you did something previously you add –DDE
When you HAVE done something previously you add -TT
Order / Stem
Imperitiv
Ska or help verb
Infinitiv
-ing or now
Presens
Bo!
bo
bor
Bero!
bero
beror
Ro!
ro
ror
Sno!
sno
snor
Tro!
tro
tror
Ske!
ske
sker
Avsky!
avsky
avskyr
Bry!
bry
bryr
Fly!
fly
flyr
Spy!
spy
spyr
Sy!
sy
syr
Må!
må
mår
Nå!
nå
når
Spå!
spå
spår
Så!
så
sår
Klä!
klä
klär
So to translate one of the examples above with examples:
Imperitiv
Infinitiv
Presens
Bo!
bo
Jag vill bo i Sverige
I want to live in Sweden
bor
Jag bor i Sverige
I am living in Sweden
LIVE!
Igår or past
Preteritum
Imperfekt
bodde
berodde
rodde
snodde
trodde
skedde
avskydde
brydde
flydde
spydde
sydde
mådde
nådde
spådde
sådde
klädde
/
Preteritum
/
Imperfekt
bodde
Jag bodde i sverige
I lived in Sweden
Har, hade, haft
Supinum
bott
berott
rott
snott
trott
skett
avskytt
brytt
flytt
Spytt
sytt
mått
nått
spått
sått
klätt
Supinum
bott
Jag har bott i sverige
I have lived in Sweden
That’s not so hard right? Wait till you get to group 4 they will blow your mind! They throw away all
of the rules above and make up their own set entirely changing letters etc. I find it easiest to think
of all verbs in group 4 as irregular verbs and thus just need learning off by heart. Oh did I mention
they also have their own set of irregular verbs too?!
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Group 4 – Verbs with -it endings when used after hade or har or haft
A good rule to remember is if a verb has the letter it in the middle of it, then it will probably belong
to these group of odd verbs which all adhere to the following rules. The defining feature of group 4
verbs is that they all end in –IT when in the supinum form!
To make your life easier I have included tables below of the different types of Group 4 verbs you can
get and how to bend them…
Order / Stem Ska or help verb -ing or now Igår or past
Har, hade, haft
Imperitiv
Infinitiv
Presens
Preteritum / Imperfekt Supinum
i
bind
drick
finns
hinn
sitt
slipp
spring
vinn
binda
dricka
finnas
hinna
sitta
slippa
springa
vinna
binder
dricker
finns
hinner
sitter
slipper
springer
vinner
a
u
band
drack
fanns
hann
satt
slapp
sprang
vann
bundit
druckit
funnits
hunnit
suttit
sluppit
sprungit
vunnit
Order / Shout! Ska or help verb -ing or now Igår or past
Imperativ
Infinitiv
Presens
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Har, hade, haft
Supinum
i
e
i
beskrev
blev
drev
red
sken
skrek
skrev
steg
vred
beskrivit
blivit
drivit
ridit
skinit
skrikit
skrivit
stigit
vridit
beskriv
bli
driv
rid
skin
skrik
skriv
stig
vrid
beskriva
bli
driva
rida
skina
skrika
skriva
stiga
vrida
beskriver
blir
driver
rider
skiner
skriker
skiver
stiger
vrider
Order / Shout! Ska or help verb -ing or now
Imperativ
Infinitiv
Presens
Igår or past
Har, hade, haft
Preteritum/ Imperfekt Supinum
u
ö
u
bjöd
dammsög
högg
sjöng
sjönk
sköt
bjudit
dammsugit
huggit
sjungit
sjunkit
skjutit
bjud
dammsug
hugg
sjung
sjunk
skjut
bjuda
dammsuga
hugga
sjunga
sjunka
skjuta
bjuder
dammsuger
hugger
sjunger
sjunker
skjuter
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Imperativ
Infinitiv
Presens
y
bryt
flyg
frys
stryk
Imperativ
bryta
flyga
frysa
stryka
bryter
flyger
fryser
stryker
Infinitiv
Presens
a/å
dra
slå
ta
Imperativ
dra
slå
ta
drar
slår
tar
Infinitiv
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
ö
u
bröt
flög
frös
strök
Brutit
Flugit
Frusit
strukit
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
o
a
drog
slog
tog
dragit
slagit
tagit
Presens
å
gråt
låt
Imperativ
gråta
låta
Infinitiv
gråter
låter
Presens
a/å
fall
håll
Imperativ
falla
hålla
faller
håller
Infinitiv
Presens
ät
äta
äter
Imperativ
Infinitiv
Presens
stjäl
stjäla
Imperativ
Infinitiv
stjäl
Presens
o
försov
kom
sov
återkom
försova
komma
sova
återkomma
försover
kommer
sover
återkommer
Supinum
ä
å
grät
lät
gråtit
låtit
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
ö
a/å
föll
höll
fallit
hållit
ä
ä
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
å
ä
åt
ätit
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
a
u
stal
stulit
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
Supinum
o
o
försov
kom
sov
återkom
försovit
kommit
sovit
återkommit
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© 2011 Claire Williams
Group 4 – Irregular Verbs
Some of these are also the most common verbs you will use.
Imperativ
be
bestå
ligg
lägg
Infinitiv
be
bestå
böra
dö
fortsätta
få
förstå
ge
gå
göra
ha
heta
kunna
ligga
lägga
se
skola
stå
säg
sälj
sätt
vet
vill
välj
var
pågå
se
ska
stå
sägs
sälja
sätta
veta
vilja
välja
vara
dö
fortsätt
få
förstå
ge
gå
gör
ha
het
Presens
ber
består
bör
dör
fortsätter
får
förstår
ger
går
gör
har
heter
kan
ligger
lägger
måste
pågar
ser
ska
står
säger
säljer
sätter
vet
vill
väljer
är
Preteritum/ Imperfekt
bad
bestod
borde
dog
fortsatte
fick
Förstod (g)
gav
gick
gjorde
hade
hette
kunde
låg
la(de)
måste
pågick
såg
skulle
stod (stog)
sa(de)
sålde
satte
visste
ville
valde
var
Supinum
bett
bestått
bort
dött
fortsatt
fått
förstått
Get/givit
gått
gjort
haft
hetat
kunnat
legat
lagt
måst
pågått
sett
skolat
stått
sagt
sålt
satt
vetat
velat
valt
varit
The end!
Still with me? If so I am most impressed. You will be delighted to know that that is all there is to say
about verbs in Swedish…at least for now! So, if you understand everything I have said above, and
can cope with having to learn at least the most used of the group 4 verbs then you will never
struggle with verbs again. I hope this guide has been some kind of help for you, your thoughts and
feedback would be much appreciated to [email protected].
Good luck / Lycka till!
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© 2011 Claire Williams