svara means "to answer" — a regular Group 1 verb. Its forms follow the standard pattern, but the construction English speakers must rewire is this: in Swedish you answer on a question, svara på en fråga, where English answers the question directly with no preposition. The related noun is ett svar ("an answer / a reply").
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Preteritum (past) | Supine | Imperative | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| svara | svarar | svarade | svarat | svara | Group 1 |
Pure Group 1: present svara + -r = svarar; past svarade (full -ade); supine svarat (after har); imperative Svara! ("Answer!"), the bare stem. No stem change, no agreement with the subject.
Use 1: svara på — answer a question/email
The governed construction is svara på. You answer på a question, på an email, på a message. English treats "the question" as a direct object ("answer the question"); Swedish routes it through på. There is no shortcut — memorize svara på as a fixed unit.
Kan du svara på min fråga?
Can you answer my question? svara på — the governed preposition, where English has no preposition.
Jag svarade på mejlet direkt.
I answered the email right away. svarade på — the regular Group 1 past.
Hon har inte svarat på mitt meddelande än.
She hasn't answered my message yet. har svarat på — the perfect, supine svarat after har.
Svara på frågan med ja eller nej.
Answer the question with yes or no. Imperative Svara! plus på + frågan.
Use 2: svara + person — answer someone
When you answer a person (rather than their question), the person is a plain direct object — no preposition. So you svara någon but svara på något.
Han svarade mig inte.
He didn't answer me. svara + person = direct object, no på.
Jag ska svara dig imorgon.
I'll answer you tomorrow. The person you answer takes no preposition.
Use 3: svara i telefon — answer the phone
A fixed everyday phrase: svara i telefon ("answer the phone"). Note it is i telefon (literally "in (the) phone"), a set expression.
Ingen svarar i telefon på det numret.
Nobody's answering the phone at that number. svara i telefon — a fixed phrase.
The noun: ett svar
The related noun is ett svar ("an answer / a reply") — a different word from the verb stem, so learn it separately. You ge ett svar ("give an answer") or få ett svar ("get a reply").
Jag väntar fortfarande på ett svar.
I'm still waiting for an answer. The noun ett svar — neuter gender, ett.
Common Mistakes
❌ Kan du svara min fråga?
Incorrect — you answer ON a question in Swedish: svara på min fråga. The question is not a bare direct object.
✅ Kan du svara på min fråga?
Can you answer my question?
❌ Han svarade på mig.
Off — when you answer a person, no preposition: han svarade mig. på is for the question, not the person.
✅ Han svarade mig.
He answered me.
❌ Jag svarer på mejlet. (Group 2 ending)
Incorrect — svara is Group 1, so the present is svarar (-ar), not *svarer (-er).
✅ Jag svarar på mejlet.
I answer the email.
❌ Jag svarde på frågan. (bare -de)
Incorrect — Group 1 takes the full -ade. The past is svarade, not *svarde.
✅ Jag svarade på frågan.
I answered the question.
Now practice Swedish
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Start learning Swedish→Related Topics
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