What you will learn
You can choose the past, the present or ska from the time word.
A week with Hugo
| Swedish | English |
|---|---|
| I går var Hugo hemma hela dagen. | Yesterday Hugo was at home all day. |
| För två dagar sedan hade han ett möte i Stockholm. | Two days ago he had a meeting in Stockholm. |
| I dag är han på skolan. | Today he is at the school. |
| Nu dricker han kaffe med Kenji. | Now he is having coffee with Kenji. |
| I morgon ska han spela fotboll. | Tomorrow he is going to play football. |
| Nästa vecka ska han åka till Gävle. | Next week he is going to Gävle. |
| Om en vecka börjar kursen igen. | In a week the course starts again. |
| Snart kommer bussen. | The bus is coming soon. |
The time word shows the form
| Before now | Now, or every time | Later |
|---|---|---|
| i går, i morse | nu, i dag | i morgon, i kväll |
| förra veckan, i lördags | varje dag, ofta | nästa vecka, på lördag |
| för en vecka sedan, i vintras | på vintern, på lördagar | om en vecka, snart |
Time words for a time before now take the past form, as in var and hade. Time words for now, and for things that happen often or every time, take the present, as in är and dricker. Time words for later take ska and the dictionary form, as in ska spela. The present can also be about the future when the time word makes it clear, as in Om en vecka börjar kursen igen and Snart kommer bussen.
Om en vecka means in a week from now, and för en vecka sedan means a week ago. Nästa vecka is next week, and förra veckan is last week. Snart means soon. A few time words, such as i dag and i helgen, can go with more than one form, so read the whole sentence.
Common mistakes
| Not like this | Like this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| I går ska jag jobba. | I går jobbade jag. | I går is before now, so use the past form. |
| I morgon jobbade Hugo. | I morgon ska Hugo jobba. | I morgon is later, so use ska and the dictionary form. |
| För en vecka sedan var Noor i Lund. | Om en vecka is later. För en vecka sedan is before now. |