Basic difference in pronunciation between the Swedish and English language

When it comes to pronunciation, you probably know, no matter if you are a beginner Swedish learner or an advanced, that the the way the Swedes pronounce their words are very different from the English language.

Here are som basic differences between Swedish and English:

W

Swedes don't really have the letter w. You may see it in last names and names of places, but really no. When we sing our alphabet song in Swedish we skipp it. Therefore, if we do happen to find the letter that has snuck in to our language, it is always pronounced as v. So if a Swede, while speaking Swedish, want to say Washington, for example, it will sound like: Vashington.

Å Ä Ö

No need to say, the extra three vowels are of course a major difference between our languages.

Å is pronounced ... similar to the sound in Awesome (if you are speak the Brittish English)

Ä is pronounced... kind of like the long a-sound in glad. Close, but not really...

Ö... do you know French? More similar to the French long u-sound in un, for example. I have a tough time finding an English equivalence.

G

The English word gym has a g-sound that the Swedes don't have. Whenever a G shows up in the Swedish language, it's always pronounsed y (a Swede would describe it as a j, but that doesn't help an English speaker) or the hard G (sometimes it's a sj-sound, but not that often). What am I trying to say? That the "dj"-sound that the English speakers do, Swedes never do.

Of course there's more differences between Swedish and English pronunciation. But not for now.

Fettisdagen i Sverige | Semla?

What's Fat Tuesday, and what's "SEMLA"?

Well, since I asked two questions in one sentence, I pretty much answered the first one, by asking the other. The "fettisdagen" is when we eat "semla". Fettisdagen is always the last Tuesday before the beginning of the Christian Lent. And if you don't know what semla is, here is a picture.

 

Kärt barn har många namn

= A beloved Child has many names.



Semla in a simplified described way: Wheat bun, the top cut off,  with almond paste in the middle, lots of whipped Cream and powdered sugar on top of the lid. Mmmmmm...

Semla

= fettisdagsbulle
= fastlagsbulle
= hetvägg

Hmmm... "hetvägg" is maybe not totally a synonym. A "hetvägg" is a "semla" in warm milk, eaten in a bowl with a spoon. Like this:

How can "semla" be described?"

Underbar
Ljuvlig
Sagolik
Himmelsk
Otrolig
Förbluffande
Fantastisk
Utsökt
God*
Läcker
Delikat
Smaklig
Skitgod
Mumsig
Smaskens

Practice and learn these useful Swedish adjectives - because you will most likely need to use them next time you eat a semla!

Need some help to pronounce these words? Watch this video: Swedish adjectives | Semlor in Sweden

And a semla recipe in English, for the ambitious and the poor guy not living in Sweden between January and Easter (which is the only time Swedes eat them), can be found here.

Vill du ha recept på semla på svenska? Här är en länk till dig.

* Note that "god" in Swedish is most often used about food (and yes, also in situations like "god morgon...). Most often the Swedish word "bra" is a better translation to the English word "good".

May I ask the Swedish teacher a question?

Of course! Teachers love questions! That is usually a very good sign of a thinking student.

We have maybe all been there: we have a question (or many) but we don't ask it because we are not comfortable in the classroom, we are worried the question is stupid or we simply don't want to be annoying. So here are some questions (including answers) that students have asked lately. Who knows, maybe you are sitting on the same! Could be worth scrolling through...

Do you conjugate Swedish verbs after person?

No. Unlike English, the Swedish verbs have the same form no matter the person: I am, you are, he is = Jag är, du är, han är.

Easy!

The conjugation group 3 of the Swedish verbs (the ones ending with a long vowel in imperative form (bo, må, sy...), do they always get double "d" in the form of the past tense?

Yes. Bo - bodde, må - mådde, sy - sydde

What is the Swedish word for the violin? I found 'fiol' and 'viol' written in the same book.

You can say both fiol (the most common) and violin (more formal and traditional) but never viol.


The word 'från' is pronounced as 'fran' rather than 'fron' Why is this? The letter å requires the lip rounding, doesn't it?

I'm not sure where you have heard this, but the word från is usually pronounced fron, although as a preposition not emphasized, so very unclear and fast. I wouldn't say that it's pronounced "fran" though.


What is the difference between åker and går?

We tend to use går = walk, what we do with our legs, and åker = go in some kind of transportation. The verb går can also be used in phrases where the way we are transported is less important: gå på bio, gå på restaurang, gå på teater...


Why is the last name Svensson (s sound) pronounced differently than Persson (sh sound)?

R + s (as in Persson) always gets an sh-sound.


If I say 'Jag är inte gift och jag har inte barn' Do I have to say 'inte' twice?

Yes, you have to repeat the sentence adverb (satsadverbial = inte).


Is this correct? 'Har du barn? Jag är gift men jag har inte barn'

Ja. You can, if you want, leave out the second subject (jag).


What is the difference if I say 'Pratar/talar du svenska?'

Not a big difference. Talar is a bit more formal.


I did not understand the difference between these two sentences from one of the videos:
Hur åker vi till Stockholm? / Hur ska vi åka till Stockholm?

Talking in future, we can use both present tense and with ska + infinitiv-verb. We use present tense especially when it is given that we talk in future, for example together with an adverb describing time: imorgon. To answer your question: there doesn't have to be a difference in meaning between these two sentences, although the first example could be for right now (in this very example not so common).
Feel free to ask more questions! You can do it through the comments here on the blog, on the facebook page on Twitter or by email. Swedish2go wants to help with your Swedish!