The Most Common Swedish Verbs - Swedish verbs list

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Learning the most common verbs in Swedish is a fundamental step towards mastering the language. Verbs form the backbone of communication, allowing us to express actions, states, and relationships in sentences. By focusing on these essential verbs, learners can build a solid foundation for understanding Swedish grammar and conversation. This guide explores the key verbs, their usage, and conjugations, providing a structured approach to enhancing your Swedish language skills effectively.

most common verbs in Swedish

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Sitta ner

Sit down
Stå upp

Stand up
Slåss

Fight
Skratta

Laugh
Läsa

Read
Spela

Play
Lyssna

Listen
Gråta

Cry
Tänka

Think
Sjunga

Sing
Titta på TV

Watch TV
Dansa

Dance
Sätta på

Turn on
Stänga av

Turn off
Vinna

Win
Flyga

Fly
Skära

Cut
Kasta bort

Throw away
Sova

Sleep
Stänga

Close
Öppna

Open
Skriva

Write
Ge

Give
Äta

Eat
Dricka

Drink
Laga mat

Cook
Tvätta

Wash
Vänta

Wait
Prata

Talk
Krypa

Crawl
Drömma

Dream
Gräva

Dig
Klappa

Clap
Sticka

Knit
Sy

Sew
Lukta

Smell
Bada

Bathe
Åka skidor

Ski
Skaka

Shake
Hålla

Hold
Trycka

Push
Dra

Pull
Slå

Hit
Gunga

Swing
Lyfta

Lift
Flytta

Move
Skrubba

Scrub
Torka

Wipe
Raka

Shave
Tala

Speak

The Most Common Swedish Verbs - Swedish verbs list

Sitta ner Sit down
Stå upp Stand up
Slåss Fight
Skratta Laugh
Läsa Read
Spela Play
Lyssna Listen
Gråta Cry
Tänka Think
Sjunga Sing
Titta på TV Watch TV
Dansa Dance
Sätta på Turn on
Stänga av Turn off
Vinna Win
Flyga Fly
Skära Cut
Kasta bort Throw away
Sova Sleep
Stänga Close
Öppna Open
Skriva Write
Ge Give
Äta Eat
Dricka Drink
Laga mat Cook
Tvätta Wash
Vänta Wait
Prata Talk
Krypa Crawl
Drömma Dream
Gräva Dig
Klappa Clap
Sticka Knit
Sy Sew
Lukta Smell
Bada Bathe
Åka skidor Ski
Skaka Shake
Hålla Hold
Trycka Push
Dra Pull
Slå Hit
Gunga Swing
Lyfta Lift
Flytta Move
Skrubba Scrub
Torka Wipe
Raka Shave
Tala Speak

Swedish Verbs

vara to be
ha to have
bli to become
kunna can/be able to
komma to come
se to see
få to get/receive
göra to do/make
säga to say
gå to go
veta to know
tycka to think
ta to take
ge to give
börja to begin
vilja to want
skola shall
bruka usually do
ligga lie/be located
verka to seem
heta be called
mena to mean
leva to live
sätta to put
spela to play
arbeta to work
läsa to read
tro to believe
älska to love
behöva to need
skriva to write
berätta to tell
höra to hear
fråga to ask
känna to know/feel
köpa to buy
hoppas to hope
skapa to create
äta to eat
förstå to understand
följa to follow
hända to happen
visa to show
betyda to mean
dö to die
vänta to wait
dricka to drink
tala to speak
tycka to seem
önska to wish
finna to find
bära to carry
låta let/allow
sova to sleep
ringa to call
öppna to open
stå to stand
minnas to remember
undra to wonder
sjunga to sing
titta to look
påverka to affect
lyssna to listen
uppleva to experience
försöka to try
leda to lead
kasta to throw
resa to travel
bygga to build
må to feel
hålla to hold
förklara to explain
finnas to exist
lära to learn/to teach
bo to live
driva to run
flyga to fly
försvinna to disappear
växa to grow
leverera to deliver
rädda to save
studera to study
svara to answer
klippa to cut
passera to pass
dela to share
kallas be called
fira to celebrate
skydda to protect
hoppa to jump
rita to draw
ingå be included
hämta to fetch
lukta to smell
betala to pay
innehålla to contain
äga to own
dansa to dance
simma to swim
promenera to walk

50 most common verbs in Swedish

Swedish verbs form the backbone of Swedish sentences, conveying actions in a clear and active manner. By mastering the top 50 Swedish verbs, you'll build a solid foundation for fluency in the language. This article provides detailed explanations, conjugations, usage examples, and essential context for each verb, making it easier to achieve proficiency in Swedish.

Swedish Verb	English Translation	Conjugation	Example Sentence
säga	to say, tell	säger, sade/sa, sagt	Hon säger hej (She says hello).
hitta	to find	hittar, hittade, hittat	Vi hittade nycklarna (We found the keys).
bli	to become	blir, blev, blivit	Han blir bättre (He's getting better).
göra	to do, make	gör, gjorde, gjort	Jag gör läxan nu (I'm doing my homework now).
komma	to come	kommer, kom, kommit	Vi kommer snart (We're coming soon).
gå	to go	går, gick, gått	Han går till skolan (He's going to school).
se	to see	ser, såg, sett	Hon ser filmen (She's watching the movie).
kunna	can, to be able to	kan, kunde, kunnat	Jag kan simma (I can swim).
vilja	to want	vill, ville, velat	Hon vill ha en glass (She wants an ice cream).
få	to get, receive	får, fick, fått	Jag får ett brev (I receive a letter).
ta	to take	tar, tog, tagit	Hon tar bussen (She takes the bus).
ge	to give	ger, gav, gett	Han ger mig en present (He gives me a present).
lära sig	to learn	lär sig, lärde sig, lärt sig	Hon lär sig svenska (She's learning Swedish).
behöva	to need	behöver, behövde, behövt	Jag behöver hjälp (I need help).
tycka om	to like	tycker om, tyckte om, tyckt om	Jag tycker om att läsa (I like to read).
börja	to start, begin	börjar, började, börjat	Han börjar jobba imorgon (He starts working tomorrow).
fortsätta	to continue	fortsätter, fortsatte, fortsatt	Vi fortsätter att träna varje dag (We continue to train every day).
sluta	to stop, quit	slutar, slutade, slutat	Hon slutar jobba klockan fem (She finishes work at five o'clock).
känna	to feel, know	känner, kände, känt	Jag känner mig trött (I feel tired).
lämna	to leave	lämnar, lämnade, lämnat	Han lämnar huset tidigt (He leaves the house early).
leva	to live	lever, levde, levt	De lever lyckligt (They live happily).
se ut	to look, appear	ser ut, såg ut, sett ut	Hon ser ut som sin mamma (She looks like her mom).
stå	to stand	står, stod, stått	Han står på scenen (He's standing on stage).
sova	to sleep	sover, sov, sovit	Barnet sover nu (The child is sleeping now).
äta	to eat	äter, åt, ätit	Vi äter middag (We're eating dinner).
dricka	to drink	dricker, drack, druckit	Hon dricker vatten (She's drinking water).
arbeta	to work	arbetar, arbetade, arbetat	Han arbetar på kontoret (He works at the office).
resa	to travel	reser, reste, rest	Vi reser till Frankrike (We're traveling to France).
läsa	to read	läser, läste, läst	Hon läser en bok (She's reading a book).
skriva	to write	skriver, skrev, skrivit	Jag skriver ett brev (I'm writing a letter).
prata	to talk, speak	pratar, pratade, pratat	Vi pratar svenska (We speak Swedish).
lyssna	to listen	lyssnar, lyssnade, lyssnat	Han lyssnar på musik (He's listening to music).
springa	to run	springer, sprang, sprungit	Hon springer varje morgon (She runs every morning).
simma	to swim	simmar, simmade, simmat	De simmar i sjön (They swim in the lake).
skratta	to laugh	skrattar, skrattade, skrattat	Vi skrattar åt skämtet (We laugh at the joke).
gråta	to cry	gråter, grät, gråtit	Hon gråter när hon är ledsen (She cries when she's sad).
sjunga	to sing	sjunger, sjöng, sjungit	De sjunger en sång (They're singing a song).
dansa	to dance	dansar, dansade, dansat	Vi dansar på festen (We're dancing at the party).
le	to smile	ler, log, lett	Han ler åt skämtet (He smiles at the joke).
rida	to ride	rider, red, ridit	Hon rider på hästen (She's riding the horse).
cykla	to bike, cycle	cyklar, cyklade, cyklat	Vi cyklar till jobbet varje dag (We bike to work every day).
simma	to swim	simmar, simmade, simmat	Barnet simmar i poolen (The child is swimming in the pool).

Most Common Irregular Verbs in Swedish

Understanding irregular verbs is essential for mastering Swedish grammar and conversation. Irregular verbs in Swedish don't follow the standard patterns of conjugation, making them unique and important to learn individually.

Swedish Verb	English Translation	Present Tense	Past Tense	Past Participle	Example Sentence
vara	to be	är	var	varit	Jag är i skolan (I am at school).
ha	to have	har	hade	haft	Hon har en bil (She has a car).
göra	to do, make	gör	gjorde	gjort	Han gör sin läxa (He does his homework).
se	to see	ser	såg	sett	Vi ser en film (We see a movie).
komma	to come	kommer	kom	kommit	De kommer snart (They are coming soon).
ta	to take	tar	tog	tagit	Jag tar bussen (I take the bus).
ge	to give	ger	gav	gett	Hon ger mig en present (She gives me a gift).
gå	to go	går	gick	gått	Han går till affären (He is going to the store).
få	to get, receive	får	fick	fått	Jag får ett brev (I receive a letter).
veta	to know	vet	visste	vetat	Han vet svaret (He knows the answer).
kunna	can, to be able to	kan	kunde	kunnat	Jag kan simma (I can swim).
vilja	to want	vill	ville	velat	Hon vill ha en glass (She wants an ice cream).
läsa	to read	läser	läste	läst	Jag läser en bok (I am reading a book).
skriva	to write	skriver	skrev	skrivit	Han skriver ett brev (He is writing a letter).
äta	to eat	äter	åt	ätit	Vi äter middag (We are eating dinner).
dricka	to drink	dricker	drack	druckit	Han dricker vatten (He is drinking water).
springa	to run	springer	sprang	sprungit	Hon springer varje morgon (She runs every morning).
sjunga	to sing	sjunger	sjöng	sjungit	De sjunger vackert (They sing beautifully).
simma	to swim	simmar	simmade	simmat	Hon simmar varje dag (She swims every day).
sova	to sleep	sover	sov	sovit	Barnet sover nu (The child is sleeping now).
lämna	to leave	lämnar	lämnade	lämnat	Han lämnade sitt jobb (He left his job).
stå	to stand	står	stod	stått	Vi står i kön (We are standing in line).
se ut	to look, appear	ser ut	såg ut	sett ut	Hon ser ut som sin mamma (She looks like her mom).
leva	to live	lever	levde	levt	De lever lyckligt (They live happily).
skratta	to laugh	skrattar	skrattade	skrattat	Vi skrattar åt skämtet (We laugh at the joke).
gråta	to cry	gråter	grät	gråtit	Hon gråter när hon är ledsen (She cries when she's sad).

Swedish verb conjugation rules

Verbs in Swedish are essential for expressing actions and states of being. Understanding how Swedish verbs conjugate is crucial for mastering the language. Swedish verbs have distinct forms for different tenses: the infinitive (base form), present tense, past tense, and past participle.

Conjugation Group	Base Form Ending	Present Tense Ending	Past Tense Ending	Example Verbs
Group 1	-a	-ar	-ade	tala (to speak), äta (to eat)
Group 2	-er	-er or -te*	-de or -te*	köper (to buy), vet (to know)
Group 3	-r	-r	-dde	tar (to take), ler (to smile)
Group 4	Various	Various	Various	vara (to be), göra (to do)