Tag Archives: Swedish
5 Irregular Swedish Verbs You Need to Master Posted by Chelsea B on Nov 19, 2021
A student recently reminded me how difficult it is to memorize irregular verbs in your foreign language. Well actually, she said, “Swedish irregular verbs are the worst.” Att vara, att se, att göra, to name a few, are among the most common words used in daily Swedish. Just as language learning is a balance of…
Into the Woods: Swedish Tree Vocabulary Posted by Chelsea B on Oct 22, 2021
Trees deserve all the credit. They provide us with clean air, the material to wood to build and heat our homes, so why don’t we know their names? Seems like the least we could do. To keep the skog momentum going from last week’s mushrooming post, I thought we should spend some time catching up…
ABBA’s Comeback and Swedish Pop Hits via Svensktoppen Posted by Chelsea B on Oct 8, 2021
ABBA’s comeback and sing-along pop hits penned in Swedish make this week’s Svensktoppen absolutely dreamy. Presented by Sveriges Radio, this top 10 chart show is the perfect way to learn what’s hot on the Swedish music scene right now and get some language practice in, too! And, the great news is that this week 8…
Pronunciation Breakdown: Swedish Sj-Sound Posted by Chelsea B on Sep 24, 2021
Learning about phonetics is cool. And if you ask me, pretty difficult! A recent blog commenter said they have difficulty with the Swedish sj-sound and asked for tips to practice it. Classified as a “voiceless fricative phoneme” it’s one of the most difficult sounds in the Swedish language to reproduce. While I’m not a phonetics…
Swedish Jews Observe Yom Kippur Posted by Chelsea B on Sep 16, 2021
Yom Kippur, is considered the holiest day of the Jewish calendar year. A day of atonement, fasting, and prayer, emphasis is placed on individual reflection and atonement in preparation for the year to come. It’s estimated that 15,000-20,000 Jews live in Sweden, and because even secular Jews tend to celebrate Jom kippur, as it’s spelled…
Choosing Between Swedish “Because Phrases” Posted by Chelsea B on Aug 13, 2021
How do you say “because” in Swedish? Lots of ways! But what is the difference between darför, för att, eftersom, and för? While they all have similar meanings, they differ in application slightly. The primary difference is the sentence structure that accompanies them. Put your grammar caps on, let’s get nitty-gritty with “because phrases”! Varför…
Summery Prose with Harry Martinson’s Juninatten Posted by Chelsea B on Jul 23, 2021
It’s July, almost August in fact. And although we’re technically over the Midsommar hump, I feel like summer only just arrived. Long days still fade into mild evenings and the sun sparkles gently as it sets into any of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes. This week, I want to share a poem that captures that feeling. Juninatten…