Du behöver inte resa långt för att hitta roliga aktiviteter.

You do not need to travel far to find fun activities.

Breakdown of Du behöver inte resa långt för att hitta roliga aktiviteter.

• du: you
• för att: to
• resa: to travel
• rolig: fun
• behöva: to need
• inte: not
• lång: far
• hitta: to find
• aktiviteten: the activity

Questions & Answers about Du behöver inte resa långt för att hitta roliga aktiviteter.

Why is it Du behöver and not something like du behövs or du behöverS?

Behöver is the present tense of the verb behöva (to need), and Swedish present tense does not change with the subject:

• jag behöver, du behöver, han/hon behöver, vi behöver, de behöver

Behövs is a different form: it’s the passive (is needed) and would mean something like you are needed in the right context, not you need.

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How does negation work here—why is inte placed after behöver?

In a normal main clause, Swedish typically puts inte after the finite (conjugated) verb:

• Du behöver inte ... = You do not need to ...

So the structure is: Subject + finite verb + inte + rest of the clause.

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Do I need an equivalent of English do (as in don’t need) in Swedish?

No. Swedish does not use do-support for negation or questions. You negate directly with inte:

• Du behöver inte ... (not du gör inte behöva)

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Why is resa in the infinitive form?

Because it follows the verb behöver. After verbs like behöva (need), vilja (want), kunna (can), måste (must), Swedish uses the infinitive without att:

• Du behöver (inte) resa = You need (not) travel

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What’s the difference between för att and just att?

För att introduces a purpose: in order to.

• ... för att hitta ... = ... in order to find ...

Plain att often corresponds to that (a content clause) or marks an infinitive in other contexts, but after modal-type verbs (like behöver) it’s usually omitted entirely.

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Could I say Du behöver inte resa långt för hitta roliga aktiviteter (without att)?

Normally no. After för att, you keep att:

• Correct: för att hitta
• Incorrect/unnatural: för att hitta → dropping att after för att is not standard.

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Why is it långt and not länge?

Långt refers to distance (far), while länge refers to time (for a long time):

• resa långt = travel far (distance)
• resa länge = travel for a long time (duration)

Here it’s about distance, so långt fits.

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Why is the adjective roliga and not roligt?

Because aktiviteter is plural, and adjectives agree with number:

• singular common gender: en rolig aktivitet
• singular neuter: ett roligt barn
• plural: roliga aktiviteter

So roliga matches the plural noun.

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Is aktiviteter definite or indefinite here, and how can I tell?

Aktiviteter is plural indefinite (activities). The plural definite would be aktiviteterna (the activities).

So:

• roliga aktiviteter = fun activities
• roliga aktiviteterna = the fun activities

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Why is Swedish using Du—could it also be Ni?

Du is informal singular you and is the most common choice in modern Swedish (even with strangers in many contexts). Ni can be:

• plural you (talking to more than one person), or
• a more formal/polite singular you in some situations

So you could say Ni behöver inte resa långt ... if you mean multiple people, or if you’re using a more formal address.

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What is the basic word order of the whole sentence?

A simple breakdown:

• Du (subject)
• behöver (finite verb)
• inte (negation)
• resa långt (infinitive + adverb)
• för att hitta (purpose phrase)
• roliga aktiviteter (object noun phrase)

So: Subject + verb + inte + infinitive phrase + purpose + object.

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How would pronunciation/stress typically work in this sentence?

A natural rhythm often stresses the content words:

• Du BE-höver inte RE-sa LÅNGT för att HIT-ta RO-li-ga ak-ti-vi-TE-ter

Quick tips:

• behöver: the ö is like the vowel in English fur (but more rounded)
• inte often sounds like inte or reduced inte in fast speech
• långt has a long vowel + ng sound before t