Learn Hardcore Swedish: Vi tittar på en film på tv och dricker en kopp te. - We watch a movie on TV and drink a cup of tea.

In Swedish, titta needs the preposition på when you’re looking at or watching something: titta på något. Without på, titta just means “to look.” So you say titta på en film, titta på tv, etc. By contrast, se can take a direct object: se en film.

Is it okay to have two på in a row (tittar på … på tv)?

Yes. They do different jobs:

The first på belongs to the verb phrase titta på (“watch”).
The second på is the preposition in the adverbial på tv (“on TV”). You can’t drop either one.

Could I say Vi ser en film på tv instead? What’s the difference between se and titta på?

Yes, Vi ser en film på tv is perfectly natural. Roughly:

se (på) = see/watch (neutral).
titta på = look at/watch (often implies active, focused looking). In everyday speech they overlap a lot. You’ll also hear informal kolla på (“check out/watch”).

Why does Swedish use simple present (tittar, dricker) to mean “are watching/are drinking”?

Swedish has no separate -ing form. Simple present covers both habitual and ongoing actions. If you want to stress “right now,” you can use:

håller på att titta (is in the process of watching)
sitter och tittar (is sitting and watching)

Why is it på tv and not i tv?

For broadcast/mediums, Swedish uses på: på tv, på radio, på Netflix, på YouTube. i tv would literally mean “in the TV (set),” which sounds odd unless you mean physically inside the device. If you mean your specific device, you can say på tv:n (“on the TV set”).

Should tv be lower-case, upper-case, or spelled out?

All of these occur:

Standard today: tv (lower-case).
Also common/accepted: TV or teve. Definite forms:
tv:n or TV:n (colon used to add the -n to an initialism)
teven if you use the spelled-out form.

Do I need a comma before och?

No. You have one subject with a compound predicate: Vi [tittar …] och [dricker …]. No comma is used. A comma before och can appear when joining two full main clauses, but even then Swedish often omits it unless needed for clarity.

Why en film and not just film?

titta på en film = watch a single, whole film.
titta på film = watch films in general / be engaged in the activity of watching a movie (unspecified). Both are correct; the choice depends on whether you’re emphasizing one specific film.

Why say dricker en kopp te instead of just dricker te? And can I say ett/en te?

dricker te = drink tea (general).
dricker en kopp te = drink a serving/unit (a cup) of tea. About articles: traditionally te is neuter (ett te). In cafés you’ll hear both ett te and colloquial en te for “a tea” (a serving). The safest everyday phrasing is en kopp te.

How do I know when to use en vs ett with words like film, kopp, and te?

You mostly have to memorize each noun’s gender.

film and kopp are common gender: en film, en kopp.
te is neuter: ett te (though colloquial en te is common for a serving). Handy forms:
en film – filmen – filmer – filmerna
en kopp – koppen – koppar – kopparna
ett te – teet (definite is rare); plural teer is mostly for types of tea.

How is this pronounced? Any gotchas?

och is often pronounced just like “o” [oh] in speech.
tv is said like “TEH-veh.”
på has a long vowel: roughly “poo” (but with a Swedish o-sound).
tittar has a short i and double t: roughly “TIT-tar.”
dricker has a short i: roughly “DRIK-ker.”

Is the word order after och okay without repeating vi?

Yes. Swedish often omits the repeated subject in coordinated predicates: Vi tittar … och dricker …. If you do repeat it, use normal order: … och vi dricker …. … och dricker vi … would sound like a question or special emphasis.

Does på tv attach to the verb or to film?

Semantically it tells you where the film is shown. Placing på tv right after en film naturally reads as “a film on TV.” Either way, the meaning is the same here: you’re watching a film that’s on TV.

How would I say this if the movie is at the cinema?

Use på bio for “at the cinema”: Vi ser en film på bio or Vi går på bio (“We’re going to the movies”). You wouldn’t say titta på bio.

Can I say en kopp med te or en tekopp?

en kopp te and en kopp med te both work; the version without med is more common.
en tekopp means a teacup (the cup itself), not a serving. So you’d drink en kopp te, not en tekopp.