vinka means "to wave" — the hand gesture, whether you're greeting someone, saying goodbye, or signalling them to come closer. It is a clean Group 1 verb, conjugating just like tala, and it's an intransitive gesture verb: you don't wave something, you simply wave, optionally adding to whom with a preposition.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Preteritum (past) | Supine | Imperative | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| vinka | vinkar | vinkade | vinkat | vinka | Group 1 |
All four forms follow the Group 1 template by rule. Present is infinitive + -r (vinkar). Past adds the full -ade (vinkade). The supine ends in -at (vinkat). The imperative is the bare stem (Vinka! "Wave!"). No stem change, no agreement with the subject.
Use 1: present, past, and perfect
Hon vinkar till oss från tåget.
She's waving at us from the train. vinkar — Group 1 present.
Barnen vinkade tills bilen försvann.
The children waved until the car disappeared. vinkade — the regular -ade past.
Jag har redan vinkat hej då till dem.
I've already waved goodbye to them. har vinkat — perfect, supine vinkat after har.
Han vinkade glatt när han fick syn på mig.
He waved cheerfully when he caught sight of me. vinkade — past, intransitive.
Use 2: vinka adjö / hej då — wave goodbye
To "wave goodbye," Swedish pairs vinka with the goodbye word itself: vinka adjö (a touch more formal) or the everyday vinka hej då. The greeting word acts almost like an adverb — there is no preposition between vinka and adjö/hej då.
Vi stod på perrongen och vinkade adjö. (slightly formal)
We stood on the platform and waved goodbye. (slightly formal) vinka adjö — no preposition before adjö.
Glöm inte att vinka hej då till mormor! (informal)
Don't forget to wave goodbye to grandma! (informal) vinka hej då — the everyday version.
Use 3: vinka till någon — wave at someone
To say whom you wave at, Swedish uses the preposition till. vinka till någon = "wave at / to someone." This is the governed preposition to remember: it is till, not på or åt.
Hon vinkade till sin granne över staketet.
She waved at her neighbour over the fence. vinka till någon = wave at someone, governed by till.
Vinka till föraren så han stannar.
Wave at the driver so he stops. vinka till — getting someone's attention.
Use 4: directional vinka in / fram
With a directional particle, vinka means waving someone in a direction: vinka in ("wave someone in"), vinka fram ("wave someone forward"), vinka av ("wave someone off / see them off"). Here the gesture is an instruction.
Vakten vinkade in oss på parkeringen.
The guard waved us into the car park. vinka in = wave someone in/through.
Polisen vinkade fram nästa bil.
The police officer waved the next car forward. vinka fram = wave someone forward.
Common Mistakes
❌ Jag vinkde till henne. (bare -de)
Incorrect — vinka is Group 1, so the past takes the full -ade: vinkade, not *vinkde.
✅ Jag vinkade till henne.
I waved at her.
❌ Hon vinkade på sin granne.
Off — to wave at someone, Swedish uses vinka till, not *vinka på: vinkade till sin granne.
✅ Hon vinkade till sin granne.
She waved at her neighbour.
❌ Vi vinkade adjö till tåget med handen.
Redundant — vinka already means a hand gesture, so 'med handen' ('with the hand') is unnecessary.
✅ Vi vinkade adjö till tåget.
We waved goodbye to the train.
❌ Han har vinkade hej då. (past for supine)
Incorrect — after har, use the supine vinkat, not the past vinkade: har vinkat hej då.
✅ Han har vinkat hej då.
He has waved goodbye.
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Start learning Swedish→Related Topics
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