Jag äter något innan mötet.

I eat something before the meeting.

Breakdown of Jag äter något innan mötet.

• jag: I
• äta: to eat
• mötet: the meeting
• innan: before
• något: anything

Questions & Answers about Jag äter något innan mötet.

Why is äter in the present tense if the meaning is “I will eat something before the meeting”?

In Swedish, the present tense is often used for future events, especially when there is a time expression that makes the time clear.

• Jag äter något innan mötet.
  Literally: I eat something before the meeting.
  Naturally: I’ll eat something before the meeting.

The time phrase innan mötet (“before the meeting”) shows that this is about the future, so Swedish doesn’t need anything like will or going to.

You can also say:

• Jag ska äta något innan mötet. – “I’m going to eat something before the meeting.”

Both are correct. The version with ska can feel a bit more like a plan or intention; the simple present is a bit more neutral and very common.

Could this sentence also mean a general habit, like “I eat something before the meeting (every time)”?

Yes. The present tense in Swedish is also used for habits and routines.

So Jag äter något innan mötet can mean:

• A specific future event:
  “I’ll eat something before the (coming) meeting.”
• A habitual action:
  “I (usually) eat something before the meeting.”

Context (and sometimes extra words) makes it clear:

• Varje gång har vi möte äter jag något innan mötet.
  “Every time we have a meeting, I eat something before the meeting.”

What does något mean exactly, and is there a difference between något and någonting?

Något here is an indefinite pronoun meaning “something”.

• Jag äter något. – “I eat something.”

Något and någonting are very close in meaning:

• något – slightly shorter, often a bit more informal in speech.
• någonting – a bit longer, sometimes feels slightly more emphatic or careful.

In this sentence you could say either:

• Jag äter något innan mötet.
• Jag äter någonting innan mötet.

Both are correct; the difference is tiny in everyday use.

Can något also mean “some” instead of “something”?

Yes. Något has two main uses:

1. As a pronoun = “something”

   • Jag vill ha något. – “I want something.”

2. As a determiner/adjective before a neuter noun = “some, any, a little bit of”

   • Jag vill ha något kallt. – “I want something cold.”
   • Har du något kaffe? – “Do you have any coffee?” (coffee is a neuter noun: ett kaffe)
   • Jag behöver något större. – “I need something bigger.”

In your sentence, något is used as a pronoun: “I eat something.”

Why is it mötet and not just möte? What does the ending -et mean?

Möte is a neuter noun: ett möte – “a meeting.”

Swedish usually shows definiteness (the word “the”) by adding an ending:

• ett möte – a meeting
• mötet – the meeting

So:

• innan mötet = “before the meeting”

The English translation “before the meeting” matches that: the meeting, not just “before meeting” or “before a meeting.”

How would I say “before a meeting” instead of “before the meeting”?

You would keep the indefinite form:

• innan ett möte – “before a meeting”

Compare:

• innan mötet – “before the meeting” (a specific one)
• innan ett möte – “before a meeting” (any meeting, non-specific)

So if you mean a general situation (any time there is a meeting), you might say:

• Jag brukar äta något innan ett möte.
  “I usually eat something before a meeting.”

What is the difference between innan and före? Could I say före mötet instead?

Both innan and före relate to “before,” but there are nuances:

• innan is traditionally a subordinating conjunction (before + clause)
  
  • innan mötet börjar – “before the meeting starts”
• före is a preposition (before + noun)
  
  • före mötet – “before the meeting”

In modern Swedish, innan is also very commonly used like a preposition with a noun:

• innan mötet – widely used and accepted in speech and writing.

So in practice, you can say:

• Jag äter något innan mötet.
• Jag äter något före mötet.

Both are correct. Some style guides say före + noun is a bit more formal or traditional, and innan + clause is the “classic” pattern, but everyday Swedish freely uses innan mötet.

Could I say Jag äter något innan mötet börjar? Is that different in meaning?

Yes, and that’s very natural Swedish:

• Jag äter något innan mötet börjar.
  “I eat something before the meeting starts.”

This has almost the same meaning as innan mötet but is slightly more explicit about the time point: before the meeting begins rather than just broadly “before the meeting.”

Nuance:

• innan mötet – before the general time of the meeting.
• innan mötet börjar – specifically before the starting moment of the meeting.

Can I move innan mötet to the beginning of the sentence, like in English “Before the meeting, I eat something”?

Yes, you can. Because of Swedish V2 word order (the finite verb in second position), you must adjust the order slightly:

• Innan mötet äter jag något. – “Before the meeting, I eat something.”

Structure:

1. Innan mötet – adverbial (in first position)
2. äter – finite verb (second position)
3. jag – subject
4. något – object

Both are correct:

• Jag äter något innan mötet.
• Innan mötet äter jag något.

The second version puts extra emphasis on the time (“before the meeting”).

Where would I put inte (not) if I want to say “I don’t eat anything before the meeting”?

In a main clause, inte normally comes after the finite verb:

• Jag äter inte något innan mötet.
  Literally: “I eat not something before the meeting.”

More natural Swedish would often replace inte något with the negative pronoun inget:

• Jag äter inget innan mötet. – “I don’t eat anything before the meeting.”

So typical options:

• Jag äter inte något innan mötet.
• Jag äter inget innan mötet. (more idiomatic)

Is there a continuous form in Swedish like “I am eating something before the meeting”?

Swedish does not have a separate grammatical continuous/progressive tense like English “am eating.” The simple present covers both:

• Jag äter. – can mean:
  • “I eat” (habit)
  • “I am eating” (right now)
  • “I will eat” (future, with a time expression)

If you really want to stress that the action is ongoing right now, you can add adverbs or constructions, but grammatically you still use the present tense:

• Jag håller på att äta. – “I am (in the middle of) eating.”

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

Jag is capitalized here only because it is the first word of the sentence.

Unlike English, Swedish does not capitalize the pronoun for “I” in the middle of a sentence:

• English: You and I are here.
• Swedish: Du och jag är här.

So:

• At the start of a sentence: Jag äter något.
• In the middle of a sentence: Du vet att jag äter något. – “You know that I’m eating something.”

Can I drop the pronoun Jag, like in some other languages: “Eat something before the meeting”?

Normally, no. Standard Swedish is not a “null subject” language; you usually must include the subject pronoun:

• Jag äter något innan mötet. – correct
• Äter något innan mötet. – sounds like an imperative (“Eat something before the meeting!”) or is just incorrect as a statement.

The only time you drop jag is in imperatives (commands):

• Ät något innan mötet! – “Eat something before the meeting!” (imperative verb form ät)

How do you pronounce äter, något, and mötet?

Approximate pronunciations (Standard Swedish):

• äter – [ˈɛː-tɛr]

  • ä like “e” in bed, but longer.
  • Stress on the first syllable: Ä-ter.

• något – commonly [ˈnoː-goːt] or [ˈnoːt] depending on dialect/speech style.

  • å like “o” in more (British-ish) or “oa” in boat (but shorter/cleaner).
  • In everyday speech many people don’t pronounce the g clearly: nåt.

• mötet – [ˈmøː-tɛt]

  • ö like French eu in peur, or like the vowel in British English bird (but without the r).
  • Stress on the first syllable: MÖ-tet.

Together, said naturally: Jag äter något innan mötet. – [jaːg ˈɛːtɛr ˈnoːt ˈɪnːan ˈmøːtɛt] (roughly).