Grammar 6: Prepositions in Swedish

Lesson 6:  Prepositions in Swedish  – Prepositioner i svenska

Lesson Objectives:

• ·        Understand what prepositions are in Swedish.
• ·        Learn basic Swedish prepositions and how they are used in sentences.
• ·        Practice forming simple sentences using prepositions of place and time. 

What Are Prepositions?

• Prepositions (prepositioner) are small words used to show the relationship between other words in a sentence. They are often used to describe position, time, or direction.
• English examples: in, on, under, before, after
• Swedish works in a similar way — but prepositions don’t always translate directly, so they need to be learned through context.

 

Common Swedish Prepositions

Swedish	English	Example (Swedish)	Translation (English)
i	in	Jag bor i Sverige.	I live in Sweden.
på	on, at	Boken ligger på bordet.	The book is on the table.
under	under, beneath	Katten är under sängen.	The cat is under the bed.
över	over, above	Lampan hänger över bordet.	The lamp hangs over the table.
framför	in front of	Bilen står framför huset.	The car is in front of the house.
bakom	behind	Han gömmer sig bakom dörren.	He is hiding behind the door.
bredvid	beside, next to	Jag sitter bredvid dig.	I sit next to you.
mellan	between	Huset ligger mellan två träd.	The house is between two trees.
till	to	Vi går till skolan.	We are going to school.
från	from	Hon kommer från Norge.	She comes from Norway.
före	before	Vi åt före mötet.	We ate before the meeting.
efter	after	Filmen börjar efter lunch.	The movie starts after lunch.

 

Grammar Tips

·        Swedish word order usually places the preposition before the noun or pronoun it relates to.

·        Prepositions are often used together with definite forms (e.g., på bordet = on the table).

·        Be aware: Some prepositions do not translate one-to-one. Example: på jobbet = at work, not "on the job".

 

Preposition in Swedish

vid	by, at, next to	av	of, by, with
i	in	bakom	behind
på	on, in, at	bland	among
hos	at the house of	bredvid	beside
till	to	efter	after, for
från	from	enligt	according to
genom	through, by	framför	in front of
längs	along	för	for, by, with
över	across, over	omkring	around
mot	towards, to	med	with, by
mellan	between	under	under, below
om	around, about, in	utan	without
sedan	since	utom	except for
trots	in spite of	åt	towards, for

Vid is used to express a position next to something, but with no contact. I is used to express a position in something that is seen to have volume (room, containers, etc.); and it is also used with countries, cities, villages, etc. På is used to express a position on something that is seen as a line or surface with contact; and it is also used with islands, addresses, and particular places, such as bank, post office, cinema, hospital, library, etc. Three exceptions to using på with particular places include school, the shop and church: i skolan, i affären, i kyrkan.

Practice Sentences

Try reading and understanding these:

     1.     Katten ligger under stolen.
2.     Vi träffas efter jobbet.
3.     Barnet sitter mellan sina föräldrar.
4.     Jag går till affären varje dag.
5.     Solen går ner över havet.

Mini Quiz (Translate to English)

     1.     Hunden springer bakom huset.
2.     Vi bor i en liten stad.
3.     Hon sitter bredvid mig.
4.     Boken är på stolen.
5.     De reste från Tyskland.

Answers

      1.     The dog runs behind the house.
2.     We live in a small town.
3.     She is sitting next to me.
4.     The book is on the chair.
5.     They traveled from Germany.