Barnen sitter på golvet och leker.

The children sit on the floor and play.

Breakdown of Barnen sitter på golvet och leker.

• och: and
• på: on
• barnet: the child
• leka: to play
• sitta: to sit
• golvet: the floor

Questions & Answers about Barnen sitter på golvet och leker.

What does the -en in Barnen mean?

It’s the definite plural ending: barnen = “the children.” The noun barn is neuter and irregular:

• ett barn (a child)
• barnet (the child)
• barn (children)
• barnen (the children)

Why is it golvet (definite) and not just golv?

Swedish often uses the definite form for familiar, specific surfaces and places in the immediate context (like “the floor” of the room you’re in). So på golvet is the natural choice. På ett golv would sound like “on some (unspecified) floor,” which is unusual unless you mean one of several floors.

Why på golvet and not i golvet?

På is used for surfaces (“on”): på golvet, på marken. I means “in/inside” and i golvet would mean “in the floor/into the floor” (e.g., a nail is in the floor). Note: Swedish varies by object—e.g., you sit på en stol (on a chair) but i soffan (in/on the sofa).

Does Swedish need a “be + -ing” form to say “are sitting/playing”?

No. The simple present covers both simple and progressive meanings. Here, sitter … och leker clearly conveys an ongoing action (“are sitting … and playing”).

Why use two verbs: sitter and leker? What does sitter och leker mean?

This is a common Swedish pattern: posture/motion verb + och + activity. It means they’re doing the activity while in that posture. Compare: står och pratar (standing and talking), ligger och läser (lying down and reading).

Could I just say Barnen leker på golvet?

Yes. That means “The children are playing on the floor,” without specifying posture. Sitter … och leker adds the detail that they are seated while playing.

What’s the difference between leka and spela?

• leka = to play in the sense of free/child’s play or imaginative play (e.g., leka med dockor, “play with dolls”).
• spela = to play structured games or instruments (e.g., spela fotboll, spela gitarr).

Where does negation (inte) go?

After the finite verb: Barnen sitter inte på golvet och leker. That sentence can be ambiguous in scope, though. To be clear:

• Negate only playing: Barnen sitter på golvet men leker inte.
• Negate the location: Barnen sitter inte på golvet; de leker ute.

Can I start with the place: På golvet sitter barnen och leker?

Yes. Swedish is a V2 language, so when you front På golvet, the finite verb sitter must come second: På golvet sitter barnen och leker. This puts extra emphasis on the location.

Pronunciation tips for this sentence?

• och is usually pronounced like a short “o” (often just “o/å” in casual speech).
• In barnen, the rn typically merges into a single retroflex sound in many accents.
• sitter has a short i and a long/double t.
• leker has a long e.

What are the main forms of sitta (the verb behind sitter)?

• Infinitive: sitta
• Present: sitter
• Past (preterite): satt
• Supine: suttit Example past: Barnen satt på golvet och lekte.

How do I say “sit down” (as an action) vs “are sitting” (a state)?

• Action (sit down): sätta sig. Example: Barnen sätter sig på golvet.
• State (are sitting): sitta. Example: Barnen sitter på golvet.

Why not golven?

Golven is the definite plural, “the floors.” You’d use it only if there are multiple floors involved: på golven = “on the floors.” Here we mean the single floor of the room: golvet.

Is och required between the two verbs?

Yes. In this posture+activity construction you need och: sitter och leker. You can’t say sitter leker.

How do I add what they’re playing with?

Use leka med + noun: Barnen sitter på golvet och leker med bilar/lego/dockor.

Where can I put time words like “now”?

Common options:

• Barnen sitter nu på golvet och leker.
• Barnen sitter på golvet och leker nu.
• Just nu sitter barnen på golvet och leker. All are natural; the nuance is mostly about emphasis.

Could I use håller på to stress the ongoing action?

Yes, to emphasize progress you can say:

• Barnen håller på att leka or
• Barnen håller på och leker. Both are used in modern Swedish. They stress the ongoing activity, while sitter och leker stresses the posture plus activity.

Does the position of på golvet change the meaning much? For example: Barnen sitter och leker på golvet vs Barnen sitter på golvet och leker.

Both are fine, and the difference is slight. With sitter på golvet och leker, you foreground the sitting-on-the-floor part; with sitter och leker på golvet, you slightly foreground where the playing happens. In most contexts they’re interchangeable.