Sproken
A1Swedish·29 cards

What time? Making plans and being on time

Plan a weekend meet-up, apologise for running late and catch a shop before it closes, with clock times, days and dates.

Swedes take time seriously: plans are fixed, and being late without a message gets noticed. Watch out for 'halv': halv tre means half past two, not half past three.

A close-up of a wall clock showing time and humidity, reflecting light and shadows.
Photo: Lana Kravchenko on Pexels
  1. 1

    Vad gör du i helgen?

    What are you doing this weekend?

    Tip: lit. 'What do you in the weekend?' — 'in' + the definite form means this coming one.

  2. 2

    Inget särskilt.

    Nothing special.

    Tip: The everyday answer when you have no plans.

  3. 3

    Ska vi ses?

    Shall we meet up?

    Tip: lit. 'Shall we see each other?'

  4. 4

    Passar det på lördag?

    Does Saturday suit you?

    Tip: Days take 'on' for a specific coming day.

  5. 5

    På lördag jobbar jag.

    On Saturday I'm working.

    Tip: Start with the time, and the verb still comes second.

  6. 6

    Söndag går bra.

    Sunday's fine.

    Tip: lit. 'Sunday goes well.'

  7. 7

    Vilken tid?

    What time?

    Tip: The quick way to ask when.

  8. 8

    Halv tre?

    Half past two?

    Tip: Half TO three: Swedes count towards the next hour.

  9. 9

    Det passar bra.

    That works.

    Tip: lit. 'It fits well.'

  10. 10

    Vi ses på söndag då!

    See you on Sunday then!

    Tip: The last word means 'then' — it wraps up the plan.

  11. 11

    Förlåt, jag är lite sen!

    Sorry, I'm a bit late!

    Tip: About a person: late. About time: the adverb form gets a -t.

  12. 12

    Ingen fara!

    No worries!

    Tip: lit. 'No danger!' — no problem.

  13. 13

    När är du här?

    When will you be here?

    Tip: Swedish uses the present tense for the near future.

  14. 14

    Om tio minuter.

    In ten minutes.

    Tip: 'In' for time from now uses this little word, not 'i'.

  15. 15

    Har du väntat länge?

    Have you been waiting long?

    Tip: Perfect tense where English uses 'have been …ing'.

  16. 16

    Bara en kvart.

    Just a quarter of an hour.

    Tip: Fifteen minutes, in one word.

  17. 17

    Nästa gång är du i tid, va?

    Next time you'll be on time, right?

    Tip: Time phrase first, then verb, then subject.

  18. 18

    Jag lovar!

    I promise!

    Tip: Simple present.

  19. 19

    Vad är klockan?

    What time is it?

    Tip: lit. 'What is the clock?'

  20. 20

    Fem i sex.

    Five to six.

    Tip: lit. 'five in six' — minutes before the hour use 'i'.

  21. 21

    Skynda dig!

    Hurry up!

    Tip: Reflexive: lit. 'hurry yourself'.

  22. 22

    Har ni öppet?

    Are you open?

    Tip: lit. 'Have you open?' — shops 'have' open or closed.

  23. 23

    Vi stänger klockan sex.

    We close at six.

    Tip: No word for 'at' before a clock time.

  24. 24

    När öppnar ni imorgon?

    When do you open tomorrow?

    Tip: Plural 'you' for a shop or business.

  25. 25

    Klockan tio.

    At ten.

    Tip: Clock times start with the word for clock.

  26. 26

    Tio till sju på vardagar.

    Ten to seven on weekdays.

    Tip: lit. 'on everyday-days' — Monday to Friday.

  27. 27

    Vad är det för datum idag?

    What's the date today?

    Tip: lit. 'What is it for date today?'

  28. 28

    Det är den fjärde oktober.

    It's the fourth of October.

    Tip: Dates use 'the' + an ordinal, and no 'of'.

  29. 29

    Så fram till den fjärde november?

    So until the fourth of November?

    Tip: lit. 'forward to' — up to and including.