11 Common Swedish Words and Phrases You Should Know

Swedish (or Svenska) is a Germanic language spoken by about 10 million people, with the majority of them living in Sweden, while others may be living in countries like Norway, Finland, and Estonia.

A lot of people in Sweden are fluent in the English language, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know a few common words and phrases to speak with the locals and to get around.

Here are 11 common Swedish words and phrases that you should know.

Hej!

Meaning - hello!

One of the most important words and phrases in any language is knowing how to greet someone. A simple “Hej” is similar to how the English say “Hey” is pronounced and is a great start to making conversations with others.

Jeg heter…

Meaning - my name is…

If you want to introduce yourself you would say “Jeg heter (your name)”. If you want to ask the person you are talking to what their name is you would say “Vad heter du?” if you are asking a single person or “Vad heter ni?” for a group of people.

Det var trevligt att träffas

Meaning - It was nice meeting you

A great way to add before you farewell someone, we can also say “Trevligt att träffas”.

Heyjdå

Meaning - goodbye

This is a common and informal way to say farewell to someone, but there are a few more formal ways to say goodbye such as, “på återseende” and “adjö”. For other casual or informal ways to say goodbye you can use either, “Vi ses!” (See you later!), “Vi ses i morgon” (See you tomorrow) or “Hej så länge” (Bye for now).

Tack!

Meaning - Thank you

There are a few different ways to thank someone in Swedish, you can just say “Tack” or add something extra, “Tack så mycket!” (thank you so much).

Ursäkta or Ursäkta mig

Meaning - Excuse me

When you are out and about in Sweden and want to ask someone something, why not use “Ursäkta” before you start a conversation? You can also use “Ursäkta mig en sekund” (excuse me one second), or “Ursäkta mig ett ögonblick” (Excuse me one a moment) to mix things up a bit.

Jag talar bara lite svenska

Meaning - I only speak a little Swedish

Great to say if you are learning or only know a little Swedish, if you don’t speak Swedish, say “Jag pratar inte svenska” instead.

Jag förstår (verkligen) inte

Meaning - I don’t understand

Other ways you can say I don’t understand are, “Jag fattar inte” (I don’t get it), “Jeg vet verkligen inte” (I really don’t know), you can either add or not add the word “verkligen” (which means really), to the sentence, this only adds emphasis.

Jag är ledsen

Meaning - I’m sorry

If you made a mistake when speaking Swedish you would say “Jag är ledsen”, you can also just say “Ledsen”, as a short and casual way to say “sorry”.

Släng dig i väggen

If you are wanting to insult someone and tell them to go away or in English “to take a hike”. In Sweden you would say “Släng dig i väggen” this literally means “to throw themselves in the wall”.

Alla höns hemma/Inte alla hästar i stallet

Instead of saying “you’re crazy” Swedes like to say things like “You don’t have all the hens at home” or “you don’t have all your horses in the stable”.

Conclusion

The Swedish language is very similar to Norwegian and Danish due to their Old Norse heritage. If you were to learn Swedish, you will be able to understand other Scandinavian languages like Norwegian without too much difficulty. Although some words may be pronounced or spelled differently, they are still very closely related to each other.