Skämtet är roligt.

to be

Breakdown of Skämtet är roligt.

• rolig: funny
• skämtet: the joke

Questions & Answers about Skämtet är roligt.

Why does skämt become skämtet?

In Swedish, the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun.

• skämt = a joke / joke
• skämtet = the joke

The ending -et is the definite ending for many ett-words (neuter nouns).
So ett skämt means a joke, and skämtet means the joke.

Why isn’t there a separate word for the?

Because Swedish usually puts the onto the noun itself instead of using a separate word the way English does.

So instead of:

• the joke

Swedish says:

• skämtet

This is one of the biggest differences from English. The definiteness is built into the noun.

How do I know that skämt is an ett-word?

You learn the noun together with its article:

• ett skämt

In Swedish, every noun has grammatical gender, usually either:

• en-word
• ett-word

Skämt is an ett-word, and that affects other forms in the sentence, especially adjectives. That is why roligt ends in -t here.

Why is it roligt and not rolig?