Swedish Prepositions
What are prepositions?
Prepositions express a relationship between people, things, places, times, or actions. They are the small words that you see between verbs and an object.
Place
Prepositions can describe where something is.
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| på | on | Boken ligger på bordet.The book is on the table. |
| i | in | Hunden är i huset.The dog is in the house. |
| framför | in front of | Tomten står framför dörren.Santa is standing in front of the door. |
| under | under | Katten sover under sängen.The cat is sleeping under the bed. |
| över | over, above | Lampan hänger över bordet.The lamp is hanging over the table. |
| bakom | behind | Cykeln står bakom garaget.The bike is behind the garage. |
| bredvid | next to | Lisa sitter bredvid Thomas.Lisa is sitting next to Thomas. |
| mellan | between | Banken ligger mellan apoteket och skolan.The bank is between the pharmacy and the school. |
| vid | by, at | Vi sitter vid fönstret.We are sitting by the window. |
| hos | at (someone's place), with | Thomas bor hos sina föräldrar.Thomas lives with his parents. |
Direction
They can also describe movement towards or away from something.
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| till | to | Vi går till kaféet.We are going to the café. |
| från | from | Hon kommer från Sverige.She comes from Sweden. |
| genom | through | Spöket gick genom väggen.The ghost walked through the wall. |
| mot | towards | Taxin kör mot centrum.The taxi is driving towards the city center. |
| ur | out of | Hon tar kakan ur burken.She takes the cookie out of the jar. |
| längs | along | Vi promenerar längs stranden.We are walking along the beach. |
| över | across | Barnen springer över gatan.The children run across the street. |
Time
Prepositions are also used in expressions of time.
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| innan | before | Hon tvättar händerna innan maten.She washes her hands before the meal. |
| efter | after | Vi ses efter jobbet.See you after work. |
| i | for (duration) | Han bodde där i tre år.He lived there for three years. |
| på | on (days) | Vi ses på måndag.See you on Monday. |
| om | in (future) | Tåget går om tio minuter.The train leaves in ten minutes. |
| före | before | Kom före klockan åtta.Come before eight o'clock. |
| under | during | Han somnade under filmen.He fell asleep during the movie. |
| sedan | since | Jag har bott här sedan 2020.I have lived here since 2020. |
| till | until | Affären har öppet till klockan sex.The store is open until six o'clock. |
Means and other relationships
Prepositions can express many other relationships.
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| med | by, with | Hon reser med buss.She travels by bus. |
| till | for, to (recipient) | Jag köpte en present till Anna.I bought a present for Anna. |
| för | for | Han gjorde det för sin familj.He did it for his family. |
| åt | for (on someone's behalf) | Köpte du choklad åt mig?Did you buy chocolate for me? |
| utan | without | Jag dricker kaffe utan socker.I drink coffee without sugar. |
| om | about | Filmen handlar om Sverige.The movie is about Sweden. |
| av | of, by | Tröjan är gjord av ull.The sweater is made of wool. |
When prepositions are used with pronouns, the pronouns appear in the object form: Personal Pronouns
Remember that prepositions often do not translate word for word between languages when used in a more abstract way. The same kind of expression can use a different preposition in Swedish and English, so many combinations need to be learned as complete phrases. This can be difficult if the learner hasn't tuned into this and let go.