Breakdown of Mötet börjar om nio minuter.
börja
to start
mötet
the meeting
minuten
the minute
om
in (time from now)
Questions & Answers about Mötet börjar om nio minuter.
Why does it say mötet and not just möte?
Because Swedish marks definiteness with an ending. Möte is a neuter (ett) noun: ett möte = a meeting. The definite singular adds -t: mötet = the meeting. Full paradigm:
- ett möte (indefinite singular)
- mötet (definite singular)
- möten (indefinite plural)
- mötena (definite plural)
Why is the verb in the present (börjar) if the meeting is in the future?
Swedish commonly uses the present tense for scheduled or near-future events. Mötet börjar om nio minuter is perfectly natural. You can also say:
- Mötet ska börja om nio minuter (is supposed/expected to start)
- Mötet kommer att börja om nio minuter (will start; a bit more neutral/formal)
What does om mean here, and how is it different from other time prepositions?
Here om means “in (from now)”. Compare:
- om nio minuter = in nine minutes (from now)
- i nio minuter = for nine minutes (duration)
- på nio minuter = in nine minutes (time required to complete something)
- för nio minuter sedan = nine minutes ago
Can I change the word order to put the time first?