Archive for 'Swedish Language'
Swedish expressions: “to put the icing on the cake” Posted by Stephen Maconi on Jul 19, 2017
Just like English and any other language, Swedish is full of fun expressions. One is, Det är ingen ko på isen! – There’s no cow on the ice! This quirky expression means, “No worries! It’s no problem!” Not everyone says ingen ko på isen, but if you meet someone who does, that person will likely…
Language examinations in Sweden Posted by Tibor on Jul 3, 2017
Most of you are familiar with international language examinations like the English IELTS, Cambridge Certificate, or for example the Spanish DELE. In Sweden we have two internationally recognized language examinations with two different purposes: -TISUS stands for Test in Swedish for Universities and it is available few times a year both in Sweden and some…
Talking about the weather in Swedish Posted by Stephen Maconi on Jun 7, 2017
It’s raining! Picture it: You’re on vacation in Stockholm during the autumn, and suddenly, rain starts to fall. You’re getting soaked! What do you do? Maybe you want to buy ett paraply, an umbrella. Or maybe you just want to talk about the weather. Swedes love small-talk, so you’ll fit right in! And have we…
Sound Swedish with speech tones! Posted by Stephen Maconi on May 10, 2017
The Swedish language is known by many to be a melodic one, and many say that Swedes sound like they’re singing when they speak. Is this true? Well, in truth, it depends largely on who’s speaking! Less individually, more regionally. In many parts of Sweden, people speak with a rather “flat” tone – compare Gothenburg…
Ordvitsar – Puns for advanced learners Posted by Tibor on May 1, 2017
I went a few moths ago to see the Swedish Pun Championships in Gothenburg. Where else? The capital city of puns and jokes in Sweden. It was very nice after a really long work week. Some of the jokes were really bad we would say they had lågvattenmärke literally low point but I think you…
Älvdalska-Elfdalian Posted by Tibor on Apr 17, 2017
Today I have a real treat for everyone who is in love with languages. Have you heard about the ancient dialect of Elfdalian? Not? Where I can give you a quick summary. I can also provide you a very nice poem written by Lars Göran Lannegård who obviously speaks the dialect. I say dialect but…
Talking about money in Swedish, part 2 Posted by Stephen Maconi on Mar 29, 2017
Money is a standard topic of conversation in any language. After all, wherever you are, you have to be able to buy groceries, fika, and that bottle of wine from Systembolaget for dinner at your friends’. (If you don’t know, Systembolaget is the (only) liquor store in Sweden.) Review. In the last post, Talking about…