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Questions & Answers about Jag ringer dem när jag kommer hem.
Why is the present tense used to talk about the future here?
Swedish often uses the present for near or scheduled future when a time expression or clause makes the timing clear. So present forms like ringer and kommer naturally refer to the future in this sentence. You can also say Jag ska ringa dem... to stress intention, but it isn’t required.
What’s the difference between ringer and ska ringa?
- Jag ringer dem när ... = neutral statement about what will happen at that time.
- Jag ska ringa dem när ... = adds a sense of plan/intention (“I’m going to/I will”). Both are correct; choose the one that fits your nuance.
Do I need to say ringa till dem, or is ringa dem enough?
Both are fine:
- ringa någon (transitive) is very common and perfectly correct.
- ringa till någon is also common; it can feel a bit more explicitly “to call to.” Avoid overdoing prepositions: you don’t need both an object and a preposition (don’t say “ringa till dem” and then another object).
Why is it dem and not de? And what about dom?
- de = subject form (“they”): De ringer mig.
- dem = object form (“them”): Jag ringer dem.
- Both are pronounced dom in most accents. In informal writing, dom is widely used, but in standard formal writing stick to de/dem.
Where would I put inte (not)?
- In a main clause, it comes after the finite verb: Jag ringer inte dem (general negation) or Jag ringer dem inte (often read as “I don’t call them,” neutral; position can affect emphasis).
- In a subordinate clause, it comes before the finite verb: när jag inte kommer hem. Examples:
- Jag ringer dem inte när jag kommer hem.
- När jag inte kommer hem, ringer jag dem.
What happens if I put the när-clause first? Any word-order changes?
Yes, Swedish is V2 in main clauses. If you front the time clause, the finite verb stays in second position:
- När jag kommer hem, ringer jag dem. Not: “När jag kommer hem, jag ringer dem.”
Why hem and not hemma? What about hemifrån?
- hem = motion towards home (direction): komma hem, gå hem, åka hem.
- hemma = being at home (location): Jag är hemma.
- hemifrån = from home (origin): Jag ringer hemifrån. So kommer hem (“come/get home”) is the right choice here.
Could I say går hem or åker hem instead of kommer hem?
Different nuance:
- går hem = walking home.
- åker hem = going home by vehicle.
- kommer hem = focuses on the arrival at home (“come/get home”) without specifying how you travel. Here, you want the arrival, so kommer hem fits best.
Is a comma needed before när?
- Main clause + following subordinate clause: usually no comma: Jag ringer dem när jag kommer hem.
- If the subordinate clause comes first, a comma after it is common: När jag kommer hem, ringer jag dem.
Why ringer and not ringar?
The verb ringa belongs to a group that takes -er in the present: jag ringer. Many verbs ending in -a take -ar (e.g., tala → talar), but not this one. Related: ringa upp (någon) means “to call (someone)” (often with a nuance of dialing/reaching them, sometimes as a call-back).
How would I say this in the past?
Use past forms in both clauses:
- Jag ringde dem när jag kom hem.
Do I ever say till hem?
No. With “home” you don’t use a preposition: hem on its own. But when specifying whose home, you use hem till:
- Jag går hem.
- Jag går hem till dig/henne/dem.
Is Jag always capitalized like English “I”?
No. jag is only capitalized at the beginning of a sentence or for normal capitalization rules (titles, etc.). Unlike English, Swedish doesn’t capitalize the first-person pronoun by default.
Can dem mean “you (plural)” here?
No. dem = “them.” For “you (plural)” as an object, use er: Jag ringer er. The subject form is ni.