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
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!
