There are three different word order structures to follow in the Swedish language: the traditional word order of the main clause, the inverted word order of the main clause, and the word order of the subordinate clause.
A main clause contains an independent thought and can form a grammatically acceptable and understandable sentence on its own. A subordinate clause adds information to the main clause or specifies something in the main clause, and it does not work on its own without the main clause.
The traditional word order
The traditional word order of the main clause follows a basic pattern where the first element of the sentence is a subject, followed closely by a verb and an object (SVO). Qualifiers such as negative words (inte, ej) and specific adverbs (alltid, kanske, redan) are usually placed after the first verb. At the end of the sentence, additional information on how something was done (tydligt), where it was done (i sängen) and when (på morgonen), can also be included.
The traditional word order in a nutshell: subject, verb, qualifier, object, how, where, when.
Jenny köpte en ny bok i går.
Jenny bought a new book yesterday.
Hon vill inte äta frukost hemma i morgon.
She doesn’t want to eat breakfast at home tomorrow.
The inverted word order
The inverted word order of the main clause is needed when the sentence starts with something else than a subject, for example with an expression describing a place or a time. In an inverted word order the subject and the verb change places (VSO).
The inverted word order in a nutshell: alternate expression, verb, subject, qualifier, object, how, where, when.
Där lyssnade vi alltid på rockmusik.
There we always listened to rock music.
Idag har jag inte haft tid att laga mat.
Today I haven’t had time to cook (food).
Note that the predicate always takes the second place in the main clause, regardless of whether the order is traditional (SVO) or inverted (VSO):
- Traditional: Max spelar piano i flera timmar hemma.
- Inverted: Hemma spelar Max piano i flera timmar.