Inbrottet var i morse.

Because inbrottet is the definite form of the noun inbrott.

• ett inbrott = a burglary / a break-in
• inbrottet = the burglary / the break-in

Swedish usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun instead of putting a separate word in front like English the.

Since inbrott is an ett-word, the definite ending is -et:

• ett hus → huset
• ett äpple → äpplet
• ett inbrott → inbrottet

Inbrott is a neuter noun (an ett-word).

That means:

• indefinite singular: ett inbrott
• definite singular: inbrottet

It means a burglary, break-in, or burglary incident, depending on context.

Var is the past tense of är.

• är = is / are
• var = was / were

So:

• Inbrottet är i morse would be wrong.
• Inbrottet var i morse is correct because the event happened earlier.

Since i morse refers to this morning and implies a completed time in the past, Swedish uses var here.

I morse means this morning.

It refers specifically to the morning of today, seen from later in the day.

Examples:

• Jag åt frukost i morse. = I ate breakfast this morning.
• Det regnade i morse. = It rained this morning.

So in your sentence, Inbrottet var i morse, the idea is: The burglary was this morning.

Not really in a word-for-word English sense. I morse is a fixed Swedish time expression.

You can think of it as a set phrase meaning this morning. Swedish uses i in several time expressions like this:

• i dag = today
• i går = yesterday
• i morgon = tomorrow
• i morse = this morning
• i kväll = tonight / this evening

So it is best to learn i morse as one chunk, not by translating each word too literally.

No, not exactly.

• i morse = this morning
• på morgonen = in the morning / during the morning

Compare:

• Jag såg henne i morse. = I saw her this morning.
• Jag brukar springa på morgonen. = I usually run in the morning.

So i morse points to a specific morning: today's morning.
På morgonen is more general.

This is normal Swedish word order for a basic statement:

subject + verb + time expression

• Inbrottet = subject
• var = verb
• i morse = time expression

So the structure is very similar to English:

• The burglary
  • was
    • this morning

You could also front the time expression for emphasis:

• I morse var inbrottet.

But that sounds less natural in many situations. The original sentence is the most straightforward way to say it.

Yes, but it means something slightly different.

• Inbrottet var i morse = The burglary was this morning
  This refers to a specific burglary already known from context.

• Det var inbrott i morse = There was a burglary this morning
  This introduces the event more generally.

So the choice depends on whether the burglary is already identified.

A rough guide for English speakers is:

IN-brot-et

A few notes:

• in- sounds roughly like English in
• brott has a short vowel and a sharp tt
• the final -et is an unstressed ending

The o in brott is not exactly like English o. It is closer to a short Swedish vowel sound that English does not match perfectly.

Yes. The exact English translation depends on context.

• burglary is often used in more formal or legal English
• break-in is often more everyday English

So inbrott can match either one. If the meaning has already been given to the learner, the main grammar point here is still that inbrottet is the definite singular form.

Yes. It is short, but completely natural if the context is clear.

For example, if people are talking about a specific burglary, someone might ask when it happened, and the answer could be:

• Inbrottet var i morse.

Swedish often allows short context-dependent sentences just like English does.