Learn Hardcore Swedish: Jag tror att det är en bra idé.

Full form (more formal/neutral):
- Jag tror att det är en bra idé. – I think that it is a good idea.
Spoken/colloquial form (very common):
- Jag tror det är en bra idé.

In everyday spoken Swedish, att is often dropped in this type of clause, just like that in English (“I think it’s a good idea”).

So:

With att = always correct, neutral, slightly more written/formal.
Without att = very common in speech, fully natural in informal writing as well.

You cannot drop anything else, though.
✗ Jag tror är en bra idé – ungrammatical.
You must keep the subject det and the verb är.

What is the difference between tror and tycker? Could I say Jag tycker att det är en bra idé?

Both tror and tycker can be translated as “think” in English, but they are used in different situations.

tro (tror) = to believe / to think something is probably true
- Often about facts, predictions, guesses, or beliefs.
- Example: Jag tror att det regnar imorgon. – I think (believe) it will rain tomorrow.
tycka (tycker) = to think in the sense of having an opinion
- Often about preferences, judgments, evaluations.
- Example: Jag tycker att filmen var bra. – I think (in my opinion) the film was good.

In your sentence:

Jag tror att det är en bra idé.
– Suggests you believe this is a good idea, maybe based on reasoning or expectations.
Jag tycker att det är en bra idé.
– Emphasizes your opinion that this is a good idea.

Both are grammatically correct, but the nuance is slightly different:

tror → “I believe it’s a good idea.”
tycker → “In my opinion, it’s a good idea.”

Why is it det and not den, and can I leave it out like in English (“I think it’s a good idea” → no “it” before “is”)?

In det är en bra idé, det is a dummy subject, like English “it” in “it is a good idea.”

Why det, not den?
- Swedish has two grammatical genders:
  - en-words (common gender)
  - ett-words (neuter)
- idé is an en-word: en idé.
- However, in the pattern det är …, det is used as a general/dummy subject, regardless of the noun’s gender.
  - Det är en bra idé.
  - Det är ett bra hus.
- You do not change det to den just because the noun is an en-word.
Can you omit det?
- No. In Swedish you must have a subject, even a dummy one.
- ✗ Jag tror är en bra idé. – incorrect
- ✓ Jag tror att det är en bra idé.

So det here is obligatory and correct, and it stays det, not den.

Why do we say en bra idé and not just bra idé? Is the article en necessary?

Yes, the article en is necessary in this sentence.

idé is an en-word (common gender):
- en idé – an idea
- idén – the idea

In det är en bra idé, we’re talking about one, unspecified idea, so we use the indefinite singular:

Det är en bra idé. – It is a good idea.

If you remove the article en, the sentence sounds ungrammatical or very foreign:

✗ Det är bra idé. – wrong in standard Swedish.

Compare with plural:

Det är bra idéer. – They are good ideas. (here idéer is plural, so no en)

So:

Singular, indefinite: en bra idé
Singular, definite: den bra idén (rare; more idiomatic is den där idén / den idén etc.)
Plural: bra idéer

Why is the word order det är en bra idé and not det en bra idé är? Are subclauses different in Swedish?

In Swedish main clauses, we have the V2 rule (the verb is in second position), but in subordinate clauses (after att, om, som, etc.), the word order is different.

Your example has two clauses:

Jag tror – main clause
att det är en bra idé – subordinate clause (introduced by att)

In subordinate clauses:

The subject usually comes before the finite verb:
- SUBJECT – VERB – …

So we get:

att det är en bra idé
- det = subject
- är = verb
- en bra idé = rest of the predicate

You cannot move är to the end:

✗ att det en bra idé är – ungrammatical
✗ att är det en bra idé – also wrong

So the word order inside the att-clause is: > att + subject + verb + rest
> att det är en bra idé

Does the adjective bra change form depending on the noun, like in other Swedish phrases?

bra is one of the adjectives that is invariable in the singular; it keeps the same form with en and ett words.

en bra idé – a good idea (idé = en-word)
ett bra hus – a good house (hus = ett-word)

In plural, it also stays bra:

bra idéer – good ideas
bra hus – good houses

So you don’t say:

✗ braa
✗ brat or similar.

Compare with a regular adjective like stor (big):

en stor idé – a big idea
ett stort hus – a big house
stora idéer / stora hus – big ideas / big houses

But bra:

bra for all: en bra, ett bra, bra (plural).

Is there a difference in meaning between Jag tror att det är en bra idé and just Det är en bra idé?

Yes, there’s a nuance difference, similar to English:

Det är en bra idé.
– A more direct, confident statement: “It is a good idea.”
– You present it almost as a fact.
Jag tror att det är en bra idé.
– A bit more tentative or subjective: “I think it’s a good idea.”
– You explicitly mark this as your belief/judgment, leaving room for doubt or discussion.

So both describe the same basic evaluation but with different levels of personal framing and certainty.

Why is Jag capitalized? Is “I” always capitalized in Swedish like in English?

Jag is capitalized here because it is the first word of the sentence, not because it means “I.”

In Swedish:

The pronoun jag is written with a lowercase j in the middle of a sentence:
- Tycker du att jag har rätt? – Do you think that I am right?
In English, I is always capitalized.
In Swedish, jag is not always capitalized—only at the beginning of a sentence or if it happens to be part of a title, etc.

So:

English: I think it is a good idea.
Swedish: Jag tror att det är en bra idé.
But inside a sentence: … att jag tror att det är en bra idé.

How do you pronounce Jag tror att det är en bra idé?

A rough guide using approximate English sounds:

Jag – like “yahg” (soft g, almost like in “yoghurt”)
tror – like “troor” (long oo sound, rolled or tapped r)
att – short “a” (like u in “cut” but a bit more open), final t is often clearly pronounced in careful speech
det – usually pronounced “de” in everyday speech (the t is often silent)
är – like “air” but shorter; closer to “e” as in “bed” + r
en – like “en” in “end”, but short
bra – like “brah” (rolled/tapped r; a is like Italian/Spanish a)
idé – ee-DAY (stress on the second syllable; the accent mark indicates the vowel is long)

In IPA (Central Swedish, approximate):

[jɑːɡ truːr at deː ɛːr en brɑː ɪˈdeː] In casual speech, att and det may be shortened and the g in jag often disappears:
[jɑ truːr att deː eː en brɑː ɪˈdeː] (one common variant)

Can I drop att and also contract det är like in English “it’s”? For example: Jag tror det e en bra idé?

In informal spoken Swedish, what you suggest is actually quite common:

Jag tror det är en bra idé. – fully acceptable, everyday speech.
Jag tror det e en bra idé. – very colloquial spelling of how it’s often pronounced.

Points to keep in mind:

Dropping att
- Jag tror det är en bra idé. – natural in speech, fine in informal writing.
- In more formal writing, prefer: Jag tror att det är en bra idé.
Det är → det e
- det e is only appropriate in very informal writing (text messages, chat, song lyrics, etc.).
- Standard spelling is always det är, even if you pronounce it more like de e.

So:

Standard writing: Jag tror att det är en bra idé.
Informal speech: sounds like “Ja tror de e en bra idé.”
Very informal writing that reflects speech: Jag tror det e en bra idé. (but avoid this in anything formal or educational).