Language/Swedish/Grammar/Past-tense

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Swedish Grammar - Past Tense

In Swedish, the past tense is used to talk about actions or events that have already happened. The past tense can be formed in two ways: with regular verbs by adding "-de" or "-te" to the stem of the verb, and with irregular verbs by changing the stem or the entire verb.

Formation of the Past Tense:

In Swedish, the past tense of regular verbs is formed by adding "-de" to the stem of the verb if the stem ends in a vowel, and "-te" if the stem ends in a consonant. The stem of the verb is usually the infinitive form without the "-a" ending. For example, the stem of the verb "att tala" (to speak) is "tal-".

Here's how to form the past tense in Swedish:

Subject + verb stem + "-de" or "-te"

Example: Jag talade svenska. (I spoke Swedish.) Du spelade gitarr. (You played guitar.) Han läste en bok. (He read a book.) Vi sjöng en sång. (We sang a song.) Ni dansade tillsammans. (You all danced together.) De arbetade på kontoret. (They worked at the office.)

Irregular Verbs in the Past Tense:

Some verbs in Swedish are irregular in the past tense and do not follow the regular "-de" or "-te" ending pattern. Here are some examples of irregular verbs in the past tense:

Verb: vara (to be) Jag var Du var Han/hon/den/det var Vi var Ni var De var

Verb: ha (to have) Jag hade Du hade Han/hon/den/det hade Vi hade Ni hade De hade

Verb: vilja (to want) Jag ville Du ville Han/hon/den/det ville Vi ville Ni ville De ville

Usage of the Past Tense:

The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that have already happened. Some common situations where the past tense is used include:

1. Actions or events that happened at a specific time in the past: Jag talade svenska igår. (I spoke Swedish yesterday.)
2. Past habits or routines: Jag brukade träna varje dag. (I used to exercise every day.)
3. Narration or storytelling: Hon gick till skolan varje dag förra året. (She went to school every day last year.)
4. Reported speech or indirect speech: Han sa att han hade en bra dag. (He said that he had a good day.)

It's important to note that in Swedish, the present perfect tense is often used instead of the simple past tense when talking about actions or events that happened recently in the past.

Example: Jag har ätit frukost. (I have had breakfast.)

Here, the present perfect tense "har ätit" (have had) is used to talk about a past action that has a connection to the present moment.

Conclusion:

In Swedish, the past tense is formed with regular verbs by adding "-de" or "-te" to the stem of the verb, and with irregular verbs by changing the stem or the entire verb. The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that have already happened, past habits or routines, narration or storytelling, and reported or indirect speech. In some cases, the present perfect tense may be used instead of the simple past tense to talk about past events that have a connection to the present moment.

Table of Contents - Swedish Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

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Introduction to Swedish

• Greeting people
• Saying goodbye
• Asking for directions
• Going to a restaurant

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Swedish Pronouns

• Personal pronouns
• Reflexive pronouns
• Demonstrative pronouns
• Possessive pronouns

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Colors and Numbers

• Colors
• Numbers 0-20
• Numbers 20-100
• Numbers above 100

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Swedish Culture

• Swedish customs
• Swedish food
• Swedish holidays
• Swedish geography

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Swedish Verbs

• Present tense
• Past tense
• Future tense
• Verbs with prepositions

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Body parts and health

• Body parts
• Symptoms and illnesses
• At the doctor's

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Swedish Nouns

• Gender of nouns
• Definite and indefinite nouns
• Plural nouns

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Travel and directions

• Means of transportation
• Booking a trip
• Giving directions

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Sweden's history

• Vikings and Middle Ages
• Modern Sweden
• Swedish politics and society

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Swedish Adjectives

• Basic adjectives
• Comparison of adjectives
• Compound adjectives

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Jobs and professions

• Types of jobs
• Job applications and interviews
• Workplace Swedish

Other Lessons

• How Often or Seldom You Do Something
• Definite and indefinite nouns
• How to express agreement
• Conditional Tense
• How to Talk About Your Daily Routine
• Plurals
• How to Talk About How Something Smells
• Possessive Case in Swedish
• Future Tense
• How to Use Be

◀️ Present tense — Previous Lesson

Next Lesson — Future tense ▶️