behålla means "to keep" or "to retain," and the smartest way to learn it is to see what it is made of: the inseparable prefix be- stuck onto the strong verb hålla ("hold"). Because be- is unstressed and never detaches, behålla simply carries hålla's entire strong paradigm along for the ride — including the ö in the past. The principal parts are behålla – behöll – behållit, mirroring hålla – höll – hållit exactly. If you already know hålla, you already know behålla; you just prefix every form with be-.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Preteritum (past) | Supine | Imperative | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| behålla | behåller | behöll | behållit | behåll | strong (be- + hålla) |
Read the vowels and you will recognise hålla's own run å → ö → å: the infinitive and present keep å (behålla, behåller), the past is behöll with ö, and the supine returns to å in behållit (-it, the strong-verb signature, never *behållt). The agreeing past participle is behållen / behållet / behållna. The whole point of the card: the be- prefix is along for ablaut-free ride — it does not regularise anything. höll becomes behöll, hållit becomes behållit.
Du får behålla boken — jag har redan läst den.
You can keep the book — I've already read it. behålla — the plain 'keep, retain'.
Hon behöll lugnet trots att alla skrek.
She kept her cool even though everyone was shouting. behöll — strong past, vowel ö. This is the form to lock in.
Vi har behållit samma telefonnummer i tjugo år.
We've kept the same phone number for twenty years. har behållit — perfect, supine vowel back to å.
Use 1: present, past and perfect
The three tenses follow the principal parts directly. The present behåller covers "keep / am keeping" — Swedish has no separate progressive. The past behöll is the bare ö-stem with no ending. The perfect is har behållit, the pluperfect hade behållit.
Jag behåller kvittot ifall jag måste lämna tillbaka skorna.
I'm keeping the receipt in case I have to return the shoes. Present behåller covers 'keep' and 'am keeping'.
De behöll huset efter skilsmässan.
They kept the house after the divorce. behöll — simple past with ö.
Hade du behållit dina gamla anteckningar hade det varit lättare nu.
Had you kept your old notes, it would be easier now. hade behållit — pluperfect, still the supine behållit.
Use 2: behålla something — what you keep
behålla is transitive: it takes a direct object — the thing you keep or retain. It covers physical things (behålla pengarna, "keep the money"), but also abstractions (behålla lugnet, "keep one's cool"; behålla jobbet, "keep one's job"; behålla hoppet, "keep hope"). Where English might reach for "hold on to" or "hang on to," Swedish very often just uses behålla.
Får jag behålla växeln?
Can I keep the change? A standard, everyday request.
Trots krisen lyckades företaget behålla all personal.
Despite the crisis, the company managed to keep all its staff. behålla here = retain.
Försök att behålla lugnet — vi löser det här.
Try to keep calm — we'll sort this out. behålla lugnet, a fixed collocation.
Use 3: the be- + hålla logic — and the contrast with plain hålla
This is the insight worth banking. behålla is not a new irregular verb to memorise from scratch; it is hålla with a prefix, and the prefix changes nothing about the conjugation. The same trick works across the language: many strong verbs reappear with be-, för-, or another prefix and keep their ablaut intact. Knowing one strong root quietly unlocks a whole family.
Meaning-wise, plain hålla is "hold / grip," while behålla narrows to "keep / retain (and not give back or let go)." You håller a bag for a second; you behåller it when you decide not to return it.
Kan du hålla väskan medan jag betalar? — Visst, men du får inte behålla den!
Can you hold the bag while I pay? — Sure, but you don't get to keep it! hålla (hold) vs behålla (keep), side by side.
Han höll på sin åsikt och behöll den genom hela debatten.
He stuck to his opinion and kept it through the whole debate. höll (hålla) vs behöll (behålla) — same ö-past, prefix and all.
Common Mistakes
❌ Du får behållade boken.
Incorrect — behålla is strong (it's hålla underneath), so no -ade ending. The past is behöll.
✅ Du får behålla boken. / Hon behöll boken.
You can keep the book. / She kept the book.
❌ Jag har behållt kvittot.
Incorrect — the strong supine ends in -it: behållit, not *behållt.
✅ Jag har behållit kvittot.
I've kept the receipt. Supine: behållit.
❌ Hon behållde lugnet.
Incorrect — a half-regularised past. The vowel must shift to ö: behöll, exactly like hålla → höll.
✅ Hon behöll lugnet.
She kept her cool. Strong past with ö: behöll.
❌ Kan du behålla väskan en sekund? (intending 'hold it briefly')
Off in nuance — for holding something for a moment use plain hålla; behålla implies keeping it for good.
✅ Kan du hålla väskan en sekund?
Can you hold the bag for a second?
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