Learn Hardcore Swedish: Kan du hämta min jacka? Jag kommer snart tillbaka. - Can you get my jacket? I will be back soon.

After a modal verb like kan (can), Swedish uses the infinitive without att: kan hämta. You cannot conjugate the second verb there, so Kan du hämtar… is ungrammatical, and you don’t insert att after a modal, so Kan du att hämta… is also wrong.

What nuance does hämta have compared with ta, ta med, ge, and lämna?

hämta = go get/fetch and bring back to the speaker’s location. Natural for “fetch my jacket (from somewhere) and bring it to me).”
ta = take/pick up; neutral and can mean remove. Kan du ta min jacka? can be ambiguous (take it away? pick it up?).
ta med = bring along (with you when you come). Kan du ta med min jacka?
ge = give/hand to. Use when the jacket is right there: Kan du ge mig min jacka?
lämna = leave/deliver/drop off. Kan du lämna min jacka hos receptionen?

Is Kan du …? polite enough in Swedish? Do I need “please”?

Yes, Kan du…? is a normal, polite request. To soften it further:

Skulle du kunna hämta min jacka? (more polite)
Add tack at the end: Kan du hämta min jacka, tack?
Var snäll och hämta min jacka. (polite/formulaic)
Snälla, kan du hämta min jacka? (adds an emotional “please”)

Why is it min jacka and not jackan? What’s the difference?

min jacka = my jacket. With possessives (min/din osv.), the noun stays indefinite (no -n/-en).
jackan = the jacket (definite), known in the context but not necessarily mine.
You do not say min jackan. With possessives, use the indefinite: min jacka.

How do I choose between min, mitt, and mina?

min for singular common-gender (en) nouns: min jacka (en jacka).
mitt for singular neuter (ett) nouns: mitt paraply (ett paraply).
mina for all plurals: mina jackor, mina paraplyer.

Can I add “for me,” as in “Can you fetch my jacket for me”?

Yes. Use åt for a beneficiary:

Kan du hämta min jacka åt mig? (perfectly natural) You’ll also hear för mig, but åt mig is the default for “for me” in this sense.

Why is snart placed between kommer and tillbaka? Could I say Jag kommer tillbaka snart?

komma tillbaka is a verb + particle. Adverbs like snart usually go in the “middle field,” after the finite verb:

Jag kommer snart tillbaka. (very natural)
Jag kommer tillbaka snart. (also fine; slightly different rhythm/emphasis) Both are correct.

Is Jag är snart tillbaka more idiomatic than Jag kommer snart tillbaka?

Both are common. Nuance:

Jag är snart tillbaka ≈ “I’ll be back soon” (often used on signs/away notes; very idiomatic).
Jag kommer snart tillbaka emphasizes the action of coming back; equally correct in speech.

Can I say Jag kommer igen snart to mean “I’ll come back soon”?

No. igen means “again,” not “back.” Use komma tillbaka for “come back.”

Correct: Jag kommer snart tillbaka.
Kom igen! is an idiom meaning “Come on!” (encouragement), not “come back.”

How do I pronounce the tricky sounds here?

kan [kan] — short a like “ah.”
du [dʉː] — front rounded vowel (like French u or German ü).
hämta [ˈhɛm.ta] — ä like “e” in “bed”; short vowel before the consonant cluster mt.
jacka [ˈjakːa] — j like English y; ck = long k.
Jag often [jɑː] in casual speech (final g reduced).
kommer [ˈkɔmːer] — short o like British “lot.”
snart [snɑːʈ] — r+t merge to retroflex [ʈ] in many accents.
tillbaka [tɪlˈbɑːka] — long a in the stressed syllable -bɑ-.

Why is du lowercase? In English “I” is capitalized; what about Swedish pronouns?

Swedish pronouns (including jag, du) are lowercase unless they start a sentence. There’s no special capitalization like English “I.”

Can I use Du kan hämta min jacka? as a question in speech?

In casual speech, yes—rising intonation can turn a statement into a question. In standard writing, use inversion with the modal first: Kan du hämta min jacka?

Can I drop the subject and just say Kommer snart tillbaka?

On signs/notes/messages: yes, Kommer snart tillbaka or Tillbaka snart are common.
In normal speech or full sentences, include the subject: Jag kommer snart tillbaka.

Is it okay to use Ni instead of du here?

Ni is the plural “you.” Use it if you’re addressing more than one person: Kan ni hämta…
As a singular formal “you,” Ni is used only in limited service contexts; everyday Swedish defaults to du even with strangers.

How do I negate the second sentence?

Place inte after the finite verb:

Jag kommer inte tillbaka. = I’m not coming back.
With snart: Jag kommer inte tillbaka snart. = I won’t be back soon. (“Jag kommer snart inte tillbaka” is odd. Keep inte close after the verb.)

How do I express future here—should I use ska or kommer att?

Swedish often uses the present for near-future plans:

Jag kommer snart tillbaka. (natural) You could say Jag ska snart komma tillbaka, but it’s less idiomatic here. Avoid Jag kommer att komma tillbaka snart unless you need that specific predictive nuance; it sounds clunky in everyday speech.