What you will learn
You can choose the right form of a verb for an instruction, for what someone does, and for a verb after vill, kan, får or måste.
One verb, three jobs
| Form | Swedish | English |
|---|---|---|
| The imperative | Köp biljetten här! | Buy the ticket here! |
| The present | Hon köper en biljett. | She is buying a ticket. |
| The dictionary form | Du kan köpa en biljett här. | You can buy a ticket here. |
The imperative tells someone what to do. The present says what someone does, now or usually. After vill, kan, får and måste, the next verb takes the dictionary form, the form you find in a word list.
How to choose
Look at the words before the verb.
| Before the verb | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| nothing, you talk to someone | the imperative | Sväng här! |
| a subject, such as jag, Noor or vi | the present | Vi svänger här. |
| vill, kan, får or måste | the dictionary form | Ni måste svänga här. |
In a question the verb comes first, as in Svänger vi här? This is still the present, because vi does the action. In Kan du svänga här? the verb after kan takes the dictionary form.
When two forms look the same
| Dictionary form | Present | Imperative |
|---|---|---|
| vänta | väntar | vänta |
| fråga | frågar | fråga |
| ta | tar | ta |
| åka | åker | åk |
| läsa | läser | läs |
With verbs that end in -ar in the present, the imperative and the dictionary form look the same. Vänta vid bron! is an instruction. In Du kan vänta vid bron the same word is the dictionary form after kan. Short verbs such as ta and gå work the same way. The words before the verb show which job it does.
Common mistakes
| Not like this | Like this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Du kan köper en biljett här. | Du kan köpa en biljett här. | After kan, use the dictionary form. |
| Svänger till höger här! | Sväng till höger här! | An instruction uses the imperative. |
| Hon köp en biljett. | Hon köper en biljett. | Hon does the action, so use the present. |