Learn Hardcore Swedish: Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk. - I think that English is a modern language.

Jag tycker att… = I think that… / In my opinion…
Jag tror att… = I believe that… (about facts, guesses, predictions)
Jag gillar… = I like… (expressing liking, not an opinion about how something is)

So:

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.
= I’m giving my opinion about English.

Compare:

Jag tror att han är hemma. – I believe he is at home (I think it’s true).
Jag gillar engelska. – I like English (the language; I enjoy it).

Here we are not just saying you like English, but that your opinion is that it is a modern language, so tycker is the natural verb.

What is the function of att here? Is it the same as English “to”?

In this sentence, att is a subordinating conjunction meaning “that”, not “to”.

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.
= I think that English is a modern language.

It introduces a subordinate clause (att engelska är ett modernt språk).

att meaning “to” is only when it comes before the infinitive form of a verb:

att läsa – to read
att skriva – to write

Here, att is followed by a subject (engelska) and a verb (är), so it must mean “that”, not “to”.

Can I leave out att and just say Jag tycker engelska är ett modernt språk?

Yes, in everyday spoken Swedish, att is often dropped in sentences like this:

Jag tycker (att) engelska är ett modernt språk.

Both versions are grammatically correct and mean the same thing.

Nuances:

With att: slightly more careful or explicit structure.
Without att: more informal, very common in speech.

As a learner, it’s safer to include att until you feel comfortable hearing and using both forms.

Why is engelska not capitalized like English is in English?

In Swedish, names of languages and nationalities are not capitalized (unless at the beginning of a sentence).

So you write:

engelska – English
svenska – Swedish
tyska – German

But you do capitalize proper names of countries and places:

England – England
Sverige – Sweden
Tyskland – Germany

So the sentence is correctly written as:

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.

Is engelska here a noun (“English (the language)”) or an adjective (“English” as in “English books”)?

Here, engelska functions as a noun, meaning “English (the English language)”.

In Swedish, language names often have this pattern:

As a noun:
- Jag talar engelska. – I speak English.
- Engelska är svårt. – English is difficult.
As an adjective:
- engelsk bok – English book
- engelsk musik – English music

Note the difference:

engelska (with -a) is often the language (noun).
engelsk (with -sk) is the adjective “English” describing something.

So in engelska är ett modernt språk, you are talking about the language itself.

Why is it ett modernt språk and not en modernt språk?

Because språk (language) is a neuter noun in Swedish, so it takes the article ett.

Swedish has two grammatical genders:

Common gender (en-words)
- en bok – a book
- en stol – a chair
Neuter gender (ett-words)
- ett språk – a language
- ett hus – a house

Since språk is an ett-word, the correct indefinite phrase is:

ett språk – a language
therefore: ett modernt språk – a modern language

Why does the adjective have a -t: modernt, not just modern?

The -t on modernt shows agreement with a neuter singular indefinite noun.

Adjectives in Swedish agree with the noun in gender and number:

Common gender, singular, indefinite (en-word):
- en modern bil – a modern car
Neuter, singular, indefinite (ett-word):
- ett modernt språk – a modern language
Plural (both genders):
- moderna språk – modern languages

So because språk is:

singular
neuter
indefinite

the correct form of the adjective is modernt.

Is it necessary to say språk here, or could you say Jag tycker att engelska är modern?

You could grammatically say:

Jag tycker att engelska är modern.

But it sounds a bit unusual unless the context is very clear, because modern is then a more general description of “English” without specifying as a language.

Natural options:

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.
– I think English is a modern language. (clear, natural)
Jag tycker att engelskan är modern.
– I think English (the language) is modern. (sounds more natural with the definite form engelskan if you drop språk)

The given sentence with ett modernt språk is the most straightforward and idiomatic for learners.

Can I change the word order, like Engelska är ett modernt språk, tycker jag?

Yes, Swedish allows some flexibility in word order for emphasis, especially with tycker jag at the end:

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.
– Neutral word order; focus on “I think that…”
Engelska är ett modernt språk, tycker jag.
– Puts more emphasis on the statement “English is a modern language”, and adds “in my opinion” at the end.

Another possible variant (slightly different nuance):

Jag tycker engelska är ett modernt språk. (omitting att)

All of these are grammatically correct. The original sentence is the most neutral, textbook-like version.

How would I say “I like English” rather than “I think English is a modern language”?

For “I like English”, you should use gillar or tycker om, not tycker alone:

Jag gillar engelska. – I like English.
Jag tycker om engelska. – I like English.

Compare:

Jag tycker att engelska är ett modernt språk.
– I think (in my opinion) that English is a modern language.
Jag gillar engelska.
– I like English (I enjoy it).

So tycker alone introduces an opinion clause, while gillar / tycker om express liking.

How would I make this plural, like “English and Swedish are modern languages”?

To make it plural, you pluralize both the adjective and the noun:

Engelska och svenska är moderna språk.
– English and Swedish are modern languages.

Changes:

språk is the same in singular and plural, but:
- Indefinite singular: ett modernt språk
- Indefinite plural: moderna språk (no article, adjective takes -a)

So:

Singular: Engelska är ett modernt språk.
Plural: Engelska och svenska är moderna språk.