arbeta (to work) | Swedish Grammar

arbeta means "to work." It is the neutral, somewhat formal word — the one you'll meet in writing, on official forms, and in careful speech. In everyday conversation, Swedes overwhelmingly use the shorter colloquial jobba instead, but arbeta is the verb to know for reading, formal contexts, and the noun arbete ("work") that comes from it. It is a fully regular Group 1 verb.

Principal parts

Infinitive	Present	Preteritum (past)	Supine	Imperative	Group
arbeta	arbetar	arbetade	arbetat	arbeta	Group 1

The pattern is the standard Group 1 one: present arbeta + r = arbetar; past arbetade; supine arbetat (after har); imperative Arbeta!. The stem arbet- never changes — all the work is done by the endings. No person agreement: jag arbetar, hon arbetar, de arbetar.

Use 1: to work (general)

On its own, arbeta means "to work" — to have a job, to be employed, to labour at something.

Hon arbetar på ett sjukhus i Malmö.

She works at a hospital in Malmö. arbetar på + workplace.

Jag arbetade hela helgen för att hinna klart.

I worked all weekend to get finished. arbetade — the regular Group 1 past.

Han har arbetat här i tjugo år.

He has worked here for twenty years. har arbetat — perfect, supine arbetat.

Use 2: arbeta som — work AS (a profession)

To state someone's profession, use arbeta som — "work as." After som, the profession takes no article (just like English drops "a" in some contexts, but here Swedish always omits it).

Jag arbetar som lärare på en grundskola.

I work as a teacher at a primary school. arbeta som + profession, no article before lärare.

Hon arbetade som sjuksköterska innan hon blev läkare.

She worked as a nurse before she became a doctor. arbetade som — past tense.

Use 3: arbeta med / på — work with / on something

To say what you work on, Swedish uses arbeta med ("work with/on a task or field") and sometimes arbeta på ("work on" a specific project, or "work at" a place). arbeta med is the broad "be involved with / work in the field of."

Vad arbetar du med?

What do you do for a living? Literally 'what do you work with?' — the standard Swedish way to ask someone's job.

Jag arbetar med marknadsföring.

I work in marketing. arbeta med + field.

Vi arbetade på en ny rapport hela veckan.

We worked on a new report all week. arbeta på + a specific project.

arbeta vs jobba

The two are interchangeable in meaning, but differ sharply in register. arbeta is neutral-to-formal; jobba is informal and far more common in everyday speech. You'll write arbeta in a CV or an email, but say jobba to a friend: Var jobbar du? ("Where do you work?") sounds completely natural, while Var arbetar du? feels slightly stiff in casual talk. Both are Group 1 with the same endings.

Var jobbar du nuförtiden? (informal)

Where do you work these days? (informal) In casual speech, jobba is the default.

Common Mistakes

❌ Jag arbeter på kontoret. (Group 2 ending)

Incorrect — arbeta is Group 1, present arbetar (-ar), not *arbeter.

✅ Jag arbetar på kontoret.

I work at the office.

❌ Jag arbetar som en lärare.

Incorrect — after arbeta som, no article: arbetar som lärare, not *som en lärare.

✅ Jag arbetar som lärare.

I work as a teacher.

❌ Vad arbetar du på? (asking someone's job)

Off — to ask someone's profession, Swedish says arbetar/jobbar du MED, not på.

✅ Vad arbetar du med?

What do you do for a living?

❌ Hon arbetde igår. (bare -de)

Incorrect — Group 1 takes the full -ade: the past is arbetade.

✅ Hon arbetade igår.

She worked yesterday.

💡

arbeta is the neutral/formal "work" — perfect for writing and the noun arbete. In speech, Swedes say jobba far more. Memorise the key construction: you ask someone's job with arbeta/jobba med (Vad arbetar du med?), state a profession with arbeta som (no article: som lärare).

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