lova (to promise) | Swedish Grammar

lova means "to promise." It is a fully regular Group 1 verb, so once you have the four principal parts every form follows by rule — there are no surprises in the conjugation. What you do have to learn is the syntax: how you attach the thing being promised and the person you promise it to.

Principal parts

Infinitive	Present	Preteritum (past)	Supine	Imperative	Group
lova	lovar	lovade	lovat	lova	Group 1

Everything is mechanical: present lova + -r → lovar; past -ade → lovade; supine -at → lovat (the form after har). The imperative is the bare stem, Lova! ("Promise!"). No vowel change, no agreement with the subject — jag lovar, hon lovar, de lovar are all identical.

Use 1: lova att + infinitive — promise to do something

To promise to do something, Swedish links lova to a second verb with att ("to"). The verb after att stays in the plain infinitive — it does not get conjugated.

Jag lovar att höra av mig så fort jag kan.

I promise to get in touch as soon as I can. lova att + the infinitive höra.

Han lovade att aldrig göra om det.

He promised never to do it again. lovade — the regular Group 1 past — + att göra.

Vi har lovat att hjälpa till med flytten.

We've promised to help with the move. har lovat — the perfect, supine lovat after har.

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The verb after lova att never changes form: it stays in the bare infinitive. Jag lovar att komma, han lovade att komma — only lova itself carries the tense.

Use 2: lova någon något — promise someone something (ditransitive)

lova is ditransitive: it can take two objects, the person and the thing, in that order, with no preposition between them. You promise someone something — exactly the English pattern, but watch the word order: the person comes first.

Jag lovade henne en present till födelsedagen.

I promised her a present for her birthday. lova + person (henne) + thing (en present), no preposition.

Mamma har lovat oss glass om vi är snälla.

Mum has promised us ice cream if we're good. har lovat + oss (us) + glass (the thing).

Chefen lovade mig en löneförhöjning men det blev inget.

The boss promised me a raise but nothing came of it. lovade mig en löneförhöjning — person then thing.

Use 3: Jag lovar! — the standalone 'I promise!'

In speech, lova very often stands completely alone as an emphatic Jag lovar! — "I promise!" / "I swear!" — used to reassure someone you mean it. You can tack on a att-clause to say what you promise, but on its own it works as a full reaction.

— Kommer du verkligen? — Jag lovar!

'Are you really coming?' 'I promise!' lova alone, as an emphatic reassurance.

Jag lovar att jag inte sa något till henne.

I promise (that) I didn't say anything to her. Jag lovar att + a whole clause.

Use 4: lova bort — promise away

The particle verb lova bort means to "promise away" — to commit something (your time, an item, yourself) to someone, often so that it's no longer available. The bort ("away") signals that it's now spoken for.

Tyvärr har jag redan lovat bort lördagen.

Unfortunately I've already promised away Saturday (I'm already committed). lova bort — promised and no longer free.

Common Mistakes

❌ Jag lover att komma.

Incorrect — lova is Group 1, so the present is lovar (-ar), not *lover (-er).

✅ Jag lovar att komma.

I promise to come.

❌ Jag lovde det igår.

Incorrect — Group 1 takes the full -ade. The past is lovade, not *lovde.

✅ Jag lovade det igår.

I promised it yesterday.

❌ Jag lovade en present till henne.

Stilted — Swedish prefers the ditransitive: the person comes right after the verb, lova henne en present.

✅ Jag lovade henne en present.

I promised her a present.

❌ Jag lovar komma.

Incorrect — you need att before the infinitive: lova att komma, not *lova komma.

✅ Jag lovar att komma.

I promise to come.

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lova is a model Group 1 verb: lova – lovar – lovade – lovat. Promise to do something with lova att

infinitive; promise someone something with the ditransitive lova någon något (person first); and reach for the standalone Jag lovar! when you just want to swear you mean it.

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