Learn Hardcore Swedish: Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll. - We have a short lesson in Swedish every evening.

Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll.
= We have a short Swedish lesson every evening
(also covers the sense “we are having …” as a regular habit)

Swedish does not have a separate “-ing” form like English (“are having”). The simple present in Swedish can express:

general facts: Jag har två barn. – I have two children.
habits: Jag tränar varje dag. – I work out every day.
actions happening now (often with a time word): Jag äter nu. – I am eating now.

So har here is exactly what you want for a regular, repeated event.

Why is it en kort lektion and not ett kort lektion?

Because lektion is a noun of the en‑gender (common gender) in Swedish.

en lektion – a lesson
lektioner – lessons

You must match the article to the noun’s gender:

en bok, en lektion, en stol
ett hus, ett språk, ett bord

So:

en kort lektion = a short lesson
not ett kort lektion (which is grammatically wrong).

Why is the adjective kort before lektion, and why doesn’t it change form here?

In Swedish, when an adjective comes before a singular indefinite noun (with en or ett), it takes its basic form:

en kort lektion – a short lesson
ett kort brev – a short letter

So kort stays kort.

It changes in other situations:

Before a definite singular noun:
- den korta lektionen – the short lesson
- det korta brevet – the short letter
Before a plural noun:
- korta lektioner – short lessons
- korta brev – short letters

So the pattern is:

Indefinite singular: en/ett kort lektion/brev
Definite singular: den/det korta lektionen/brevet
Plural: korta lektioner/brev

Can I leave out en and say Vi har kort lektion i svenska varje kväll?

No, not in standard Swedish.

In singular countable nouns, you almost always need either:

an indefinite article (en/ett), or
a definite ending (-en / -et / -n / -t).

So you normally say:

Vi har en kort lektion. – We have a short lesson.
Vi har den korta lektionen. – We have the short lesson.

Vi har kort lektion would sound incomplete/incorrect in normal Swedish.

Why is it lektion i svenska and not lektion på svenska?

Both i svenska and på svenska exist, but they mean different things:

lektion i svenska
- literally: “a lesson in Swedish (as a subject)”
- Focus: the school subject “Swedish”.
- Like: lektion i matematik / historia / biologi.
So our sentence means:
Vi har en kort lektion i svenska = We have a short lesson in the Swedish language (we’re studying Swedish).
på svenska
- literally: “in Swedish” = “in the Swedish language (as a medium)”.
- Used when something is done in Swedish:
  - Vi pratar på svenska. – We speak in Swedish.
  - Kan du skriva det på svenska? – Can you write that in Swedish?

So here, i svenska is correct because Swedish is the subject of the lesson, not just the language used.

Why is svenska not capitalized, even though it’s a language?

In Swedish, names of languages and nationalities are not capitalized (unless they start a sentence).

Examples:

svenska, engelska, franska, japanska
en svensk, en engelsman, en fransyska

So:

Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll. – correct
Vi har en kort lektion i Svenska varje kväll. – incorrect in normal Swedish spelling.

Could I say svenskan instead of svenska here?

You could, but it changes the nuance slightly.

i svenska – in Swedish (as a school subject in general)
i svenskan – in the Swedish (language), a bit more specific/definite, often about the subject as taught.

Both are possible, but lektion i svenska is the most neutral and typical phrase for “Swedish (as a subject)” here.

Compare:

Jag tycker om svenska. – I like Swedish (the language).
Jag tycker om svenskan. – I like the Swedish language (a bit more “the language itself” / more definite).

Can I change the word order, like Varje kväll har vi en kort lektion i svenska?

Yes. Both are correct:

Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll.
Varje kväll har vi en kort lektion i svenska.

Swedish allows fairly flexible word order for emphasis, as long as the V2 rule (the verb in second position) is respected.

In the second sentence:

Varje kväll – first position (adverbial of time)
har – second position (the finite verb)
vi – subject, after the verb

So the word order is still grammatical, and you simply emphasize “every evening” a bit more.

Why is it varje kväll and not something like alla kvällar or var kväll?

All of these exist, but they have slightly different flavors:

varje kväll – every evening (neutral, very common)
var kväll – also “every evening”, but less common and can sound a bit more formal/literary
alla kvällar – all evenings (more like the set of all evenings, sometimes a bit stronger in tone)

In this kind of habitual sentence, varje kväll is the most natural and standard way to say “every evening”.

Could I say Vi tar en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll instead of Vi har?

You usually don’t say ta en lektion in Swedish in the same way as English “take a class”.

The normal expression is:

ha en lektion – to have a lesson/class

Examples:

Vi har en lektion i svenska. – We have a Swedish lesson.
Läraren har lektion nu. – The teacher is having a class now.

ta en lektion can appear in some contexts (e.g. ta pianolektioner – take piano lessons), but ha lektion is the standard classroom expression for “to have a lesson” at a given time.

So:

Stick with Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll.

Does the present tense har here mean this happens regularly, like a habit?

Yes. In Swedish, the simple present can easily express habitual actions, especially with a time expression like varje kväll.

Vi har en kort lektion i svenska varje kväll.
= We have a short Swedish lesson every evening (as a routine).

Just like:

Jag dricker kaffe varje morgon. – I drink coffee every morning.
Hon tränar tre gånger i veckan. – She works out three times a week.

The present tense plus a regular-time phrase → “habit/routine” meaning.

How do I pronounce svenska and lektion? Anything tricky for English speakers?

Two main things:

svenska
- Stress on the first syllable: SVEN-ska.
- The “sv” cluster is pronounced together: like “s” + “v” in s-ven.
lektion
- Stress on the second syllable: lek-TION.
- The k before tio is hard: [k].
- The -tion part is pronounced roughly like “-shon” or “-sjon”, depending on accent, not like English “tee-on”.

So very roughly:

svenska ≈ SVEN-ska
lektion ≈ lek-SHON (Swedish [lɛkˈɧuːn] or similar, depending on dialect)

This is simplified, but it’s enough to avoid the most common mistakes.

What’s the difference between kort and liten if I wanted to describe the lesson?

Both can be used, but they focus on different things:

kort lektion – a short lesson (focus on time/length)
liten lektion – a small lesson (could mean small group, small in scope, or sometimes time, depending on context)

In your sentence, you’re talking about how long the lesson is, so kort lektion is the natural choice.
If you wanted to stress that few students attend, you might say:

Vi är en liten grupp. – We are a small group.