Han är fri nu.

• Han = subject pronoun, he
• är = present tense of vara, is/are/am
• fri = adjective, describing han
• nu = adverb, now

So the structure is:

subject + verb + adjective + adverb

A very natural basic Swedish sentence pattern.

Because är is the present tense of the verb vara (to be).

Some common forms of vara are:

• att vara = to be
• är = is/am/are
• var = was/were
• varit = been

It is an irregular verb, so you cannot predict är from the infinitive very easily. It is just a form you need to learn.

Swedish adjectives change form depending on what they describe.

Here, fri matches han, which is a singular common gender noun/pronoun.

Basic adjective pattern:

• common gender singular: fri
• neuter singular: fritt
• plural: fria

So:

• Han är fri.
• Det är fritt.
• De är fria.

In this sentence, han requires fri.

Yes. In Han är fri nu, fri is a predicative adjective. That means it comes after a linking verb like är and describes the subject.

Compare:

• en fri man = an attributive adjective, before the noun
• Mannen är fri = a predicative adjective, after the verb

The adjective still agrees in gender/number either way.

Putting nu at the end is very normal in Swedish. Time adverbs often come later in short simple sentences.

So Han är fri nu sounds completely natural.

But Swedish word order is flexible enough that you can also say:

• Nu är han fri.

That version puts more emphasis on now.

Both are correct; the difference is mainly focus and style.

Yes, absolutely.

Swedish follows the V2 rule in main clauses, which means the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

So:

• Han är fri nu.
  Subject first, neutral statement.

• Nu är han fri.
  Time word first, with är still in second position.

Both are correct Swedish. The second version emphasizes now a little more.

Normally, no. Swedish usually requires an explicit subject.

So you say:

• Han är fri nu.

Not just:

• Är fri nu in normal standard Swedish.

Unlike some other languages, Swedish does not usually drop subject pronouns in ordinary sentences.

A rough guide for an English speaker:

• han ≈ han with a clear a, not like English can
• är ≈ somewhat like air, but with a Swedish vowel quality
• fri ≈ free
• nu ≈ like new for many English speakers, but with a pure Swedish u sound that may be different from English

A few pronunciation notes:

• ä is an important Swedish vowel. It is not the same as English a.
• r in Swedish is often lighter or different from many English r sounds, depending on dialect.
• u in Swedish is one of the harder vowels for English speakers and usually needs practice.

Not always. Swedish has several words that can match English free, depending on context.

fri often means things like:

• not imprisoned
• liberated
• independent
• exempt
• unrestricted

But if you mean off work or available, Swedish often uses ledig instead.

For example:

• Han är fri nu can sound like he is free now in a broad sense.
• Han är ledig nu often means he is off now or he is available now, depending on context.

So fri and ledig overlap sometimes, but they are not identical.

Because Swedish verbs do not change according to the subject the way English verbs do.

In the present tense:

• jag är = I am
• du är = you are
• han är = he is
• vi är = we are
• de är = they are

So är stays the same for all persons.

That is one thing many English speakers find pleasantly simple about Swedish grammar.

Yes, the adjective may change depending on the subject.

• Han är fri nu.
• Hon är fri nu.
• Det är fritt nu.

With han and hon, you use fri because they are common gender singular.

With det, you normally use the neuter form fritt.

So the adjective agreement matters even when the sentence pattern stays the same.