Learn Hardcore Swedish: Det var hon som sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. - It was she who said that we would continue tomorrow.

It’s a cleft sentence used to focus or single out the element inside it. Det var hon som … emphasizes that it was specifically “she” (not someone else) who did the saying. The neutral, non‑focused version would be Hon sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon.

Why is it hon, not henne, after var?

After the verb vara (“to be”), Swedish uses the subject (nominative) form of pronouns: Det är/var jag/du/han/hon/vi/de. So you say Det var hon, not Det var henne. Using the object form there is colloquial and considered non‑standard in careful writing.

Can som be omitted in Det var hon som sa …?

No. When som is the subject of the relative clause (as here: som sa), it’s required. If som referred to an object, it can often be dropped: Det var henne (som) vi såg. But with a subject, you must keep som.

What’s the difference between sa and sade?

Both are the past tense of säga (“to say”). Sa is shorter and more common today; sade is a bit more formal or traditional. Either is acceptable in writing.

Is att required after sa?

In standard written Swedish, yes: sa att …. In everyday speech, att is often dropped after common reporting verbs: Hon sa vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. Including att is safer and clearer, especially in writing.

Why is it skulle fortsätta and not ska fortsätta?

Because it’s reported speech with “future viewed from the past” (future‑in‑the‑past). From the past point of view of “she said,” the future plan is expressed with skulle: Hon sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. If the plan is still current or you want a present perspective, many speakers use ska: Hon sa att vi ska fortsätta imorgon.

Could I use kommer att instead of ska/skulle?

You could say Hon sa att vi kommer att fortsätta imorgon, but it shifts to a present‑time prediction rather than a past‑time plan. The most idiomatic sequence‑of‑tense choice after a past reporting verb is skulle. Use kommer att for neutral predictions from the current perspective; use ska for intention/plan.

What’s the word order rule inside the att‑clause?

In subordinate clauses, the subject comes before the finite verb: att vi skulle fortsätta …, not att skulle vi fortsätta …. If you add a sentence adverb like inte, it goes after the subject and before the finite verb: att vi inte skulle fortsätta imorgon.

Where should imorgon go? Can it be moved?

The most natural spot is at the end of the clause: att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. You can place it earlier (e.g., att vi imorgon skulle fortsätta), but that sounds more formal/marked. In a main clause you can front it: Imorgon skulle vi fortsätta.

Is it imorgon or i morgon?

Both are correct. I morgon is the traditional spacing; imorgon is very common today and accepted. Be consistent within a text.

Do I need med after fortsätta?

Not necessarily. Fortsätta can be intransitive: fortsätta imorgon (“continue tomorrow”). If you want to name what you’ll continue, you can add med: fortsätta med projektet (“continue with the project”).

Can I say Det är hon som sa … instead of Det var hon som sa …?

Yes, and it’s common in speech. Det är hon som sa … identifies the person from the present point of view (“It’s she who said …”). Det var hon som sa … places the whole identification in the past. Both are acceptable; context and nuance decide.

How would I negate this, and where does inte go?

Two main options with different meanings:

To say it wasn’t her: Det var inte hon som sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon.
To say she said we would not continue: Det var hon som sa att vi inte skulle fortsätta imorgon.

Why som and not vem or vilken?

Som is the default relative pronoun for “who/that/which” in Swedish. Vem is only for questions (“who?”), and vilken/vilket/vilka is a more formal relative pronoun rarely used with personal pronouns like hon in this kind of clause.

Can I avoid the cleft and still keep the “the one who” meaning?

Yes: Hon var den som sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. This also singles her out as “the one who said it.” It’s fine, just a bit longer and slightly more formal than the cleft.

Is it okay to use the gender‑neutral pronoun hen here?

Yes. If the person is non‑binary or their gender is irrelevant/unknown, you can say Det var hen som sa att vi skulle fortsätta imorgon. This is widely accepted in modern Swedish.