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100 Most Common Swedish Words (with Example Sentences)

· 9 min read

The 100 highest-frequency Swedish words, each with a short example sentence and English translation. The core that carries most of everyday Swedish.

Why the Top 100 Matter

A small core of high-frequency words does most of the work in any language. Learn the top 100 Swedish words and you already recognise the majority of the words in an ordinary sentence: pronouns, everyday verbs, prepositions and the small connectors that carry Swedish word order.

How to Use This List

  • Read each word with its example. Say the sentence out loud.
  • Twenty a day is plenty.
  • Note that Swedish nouns take their article as an ending (en bok becomes boken). Meet both shapes and it stops being strange.
  • On PlusOneLanguage, tap any word inside a real Swedish text to save it, and the app feeds those exact words back to you in new sentences at your level.

The 100 Most Common Swedish Words

  1. och — and. Bröd och ost. — Bread and cheese.
  2. att — to / that. Det är dags att gå. — It's time to go.
  3. en / ett — a. En bok och ett bord. — A book and a table.
  4. vara — to be. Jag är trött. — I'm tired.
  5. ha — to have. Jag har tid. — I have time.
  6. i — in. Jag bor i Malmö. — I live in Malmö.
  7. på — on / at. På bordet. — On the table.
  8. av — of / by. En bok av Astrid Lindgren. — A book by Astrid Lindgren.
  9. till — to. Jag går till skolan. — I'm going to school.
  10. från — from. Jag kommer från Sverige. — I'm from Sweden.
  11. med — with. Följ med mig. — Come with me.
  12. utan — without. Kaffe utan socker. — Coffee without sugar.
  13. för — for. Det är för dig. — It's for you.
  14. om — about / if. En bok om musik. — A book about music.
  15. inte — not. Jag förstår inte. — I don't understand.
  16. ja — yes. Ja, tack. — Yes, please.
  17. nej — no. Nej, tack. — No, thank you.
  18. jag — I. Jag vet inte. — I don't know.
  19. du — you. Kommer du? — Are you coming?
  20. han — he. Han är hemma. — He's at home.
  21. hon — she. Hon kommer imorgon. — She's coming tomorrow.
  22. vi — we. Vi går ikväll. — We're going tonight.
  23. ni — you (pl.). Talar ni svenska? — Do you speak Swedish?
  24. de / dom — they. De bor här. — They live here.
  25. det — it / that. Det regnar. — It's raining.
  26. den — it / that (common gender). Den är fin. — It's nice.
  27. som — who / which. Mannen som kom. — The man who came.
  28. men — but. Litet men bra. — Small but good.
  29. eller — or. Te eller kaffe? — Tea or coffee?
  30. för att — because / in order to. För att jag är hungrig. — Because I'm hungry.
  31. också — also. Jag också. — Me too.
  32. mycket — very / much. Tack så mycket. — Thank you very much.
  33. lite — a little. Lite vatten. — A little water.
  34. mer — more. Jag vill ha mer tid. — I want more time.
  35. mindre — less. Mindre salt. — Less salt.
  36. allt — everything. Allt är bra. — Everything is fine.
  37. inget — nothing. Jag ser inget. — I see nothing.
  38. något — something. Säg något. — Say something.
  39. någon — someone. Någon ringde. — Someone called.
  40. alltid — always. Han är alltid sen. — He's always late.
  41. aldrig — never. Jag glömmer aldrig. — I never forget.
  42. ofta — often. Vi går dit ofta. — We often go there.
  43. redan — already. Är du här redan? — Are you here already?
  44. ännu — still / yet. Inte ännu. — Not yet.
  45. nu — now. Kom nu. — Come now.
  46. idag — today. Idag regnar det. — It's raining today.
  47. igår — yesterday. Igår kväll. — Yesterday evening.
  48. imorgon — tomorrow. Vi ses imorgon. — See you tomorrow.
  49. här — here. Sitt här. — Sit here.
  50. där — there. Den ligger där. — It's over there.
  51. var — where. Var är du? — Where are you?
  52. när — when. När kommer du? — When are you coming?
  53. hur — how. Hur mår du? — How are you?
  54. varför — why. Varför inte? — Why not?
  55. vem — who. Vem är det? — Who is it?
  56. vad — what. Vad gör du? — What are you doing?
  57. bra — good / well. Det går bra. — Things are going well.
  58. kunna — can. Kan du hjälpa mig? — Can you help me?
  59. måste — must. Jag måste gå. — I have to go.
  60. vilja — to want. Jag vill ha kaffe. — I want coffee.
  61. få — to get / be allowed. Får jag komma in? — May I come in?
  62. ska — shall / will. Vi ska åka imorgon. — We're going tomorrow.
  63. veta — to know (facts). Jag vet inte. — I don't know.
  64. känna — to know (people) / feel. Jag känner honom. — I know him.
  65. säga — to say. Vad säger du? — What are you saying?
  66. göra — to do. Vad gör du ikväll? — What are you doing tonight?
  67. gå — to go / walk. Jag går hem. — I'm walking home.
  68. komma — to come. Han kommer imorgon. — He's coming tomorrow.
  69. se — to see. Jag ser dig inte. — I can't see you.
  70. ge — to give. Ge mig handen. — Give me your hand.
  71. ta — to take. Ta ett äpple. — Take an apple.
  72. tänka — to think. Jag tänker på dig. — I'm thinking of you.
  73. tycka — to think / find. Jag tycker om kaffe. — I like coffee.
  74. tro — to believe. Jag tror det. — I think so.
  75. förstå — to understand. Jag förstår inte. — I don't understand.
  76. tala / prata — to speak / talk. Pratar du svenska? — Do you speak Swedish?
  77. äta — to eat. Vi äter klockan sju. — We eat at seven.
  78. dricka — to drink. Jag dricker vatten. — I drink water.
  79. sova — to sleep. Jag sover bra. — I sleep well.
  80. arbeta / jobba — to work. Jag jobbar imorgon. — I work tomorrow.
  81. bo — to live (reside). Jag bor i Göteborg. — I live in Gothenburg.
  82. dag — day. God dag. — Good day.
  83. natt — night. God natt. — Good night.
  84. år — year. Gott nytt år. — Happy new year.
  85. tid — time. Jag har ingen tid. — I have no time.
  86. timme — hour. Om en timme. — In an hour.
  87. vecka — week. Nästa vecka. — Next week.
  88. människa — person / human. En snäll människa. — A kind person.
  89. man — man. En lång man. — A tall man.
  90. kvinna — woman. En ung kvinna. — A young woman.
  91. barn — child. Barnet sover. — The child is sleeping.
  92. vän — friend. En gammal vän. — An old friend.
  93. hus — house. Ett stort hus. — A big house.
  94. hem — home. Jag åker hem. — I'm going home.
  95. stad — city. En vacker stad. — A beautiful city.
  96. vatten — water. Ett glas vatten. — A glass of water.
  97. liv — life. Livet är fint. — Life is good.
  98. stor — big. Ett stort hus. — A big house.
  99. liten — small. Ett litet problem. — A small problem.
  100. tack — thanks / please. Kaffe, tack. — Coffee, please.

Where to Go From Here

Reading a list is not the same as owning the words. What locks them in is meeting them in new sentences you have never seen before, at a level you can actually handle.

That is what PlusOneLanguage does. Save any of these 100 words to your deck, and the next Swedish text the app generates for you will reuse them in fresh contexts.

If you want the full method, read how to learn Swedish next.

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