Breakdown of Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
Questions & Answers about Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
Ämne is a neuter noun in Swedish (an ett-word). Swedish marks definiteness (roughly like “the”) by adding an ending to the noun:
- ett ämne = a subject/topic
- ämnet = the subject/topic
So:
- Det här ämne ❌ (incorrect)
- Det här ämnet ✅ (literally: this the subject, but together it means “this subject / this topic”)
In Swedish it’s completely normal to have both det här (“this”) and the definite ending -et on the noun at the same time. That’s how you say “this (specific) subject/topic” in natural Swedish.
Both det här and detta can mean “this (neuter)”, but they differ in style and frequency:
- det här ämnet – very common, everyday spoken Swedish
- detta ämne – more formal / written, or sometimes stylistic
In this context you could say:
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet. ✅
- Detta ämne kommer ofta upp på mötet. ✅ (more formal / written)
What you normally don’t say in standard Swedish is:
- Det här ämne ❌ (missing definite ending)
- Detta ämnet ❌ (double-marked in the “wrong” way for detta; sounds dialectal/colloquial in some regions, but is not standard)
So:
- With det här / den här you usually use the definite form (ämnet)
- With detta / denna you normally use the indefinite form (ämne)
Swedish uses the present tense not only for things happening right now, but also for:
Habitual actions (things that happen regularly)
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
= This topic often comes up at the meeting(s).
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
Scheduled / predictable future events
- Mötet börjar klockan tre.
= The meeting starts / will start at three.
- Mötet börjar klockan tre.
So kommer here is a normal present tense describing a repeated or typical situation. English can match this with either simple present (“comes up”) or a future-like reading (“will come up”), but Swedish just uses present.
Kommer upp is a particle verb: komma + the particle upp.
komma alone = to come (movement, arrival)
- Han kommer till mötet. – He comes / is coming to the meeting.
komma upp (in this context) = to come up as a topic, to be brought up, to arise in discussion
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
= This topic often comes up / is often brought up at the meeting.
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
So upp doesn’t mean physical “up” here; it changes the meaning of komma into something more idiomatic, just like in English “come up (as a topic)”.
Two main rules are at play:
Verb-second (V2): In main clauses, the finite verb (here: kommer) normally comes in the second position.
- Det här ämnet (1st slot)
- kommer (2nd slot, as required)
Placement of adverbs and particles:
- The adverb ofta (often) typically comes after the finite verb.
- The particle upp belongs closely to kommer, but usually comes after the adverb in this kind of sentence.
So the natural order is:
- Det här ämnet (subject)
- kommer (verb, 2nd position)
- ofta (adverb)
- upp (particle)
Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet. ✅
Det här ämnet kommer upp ofta på mötet. is not impossible, but it sounds less natural and can feel slightly marked or different in emphasis. The default choice is kommer ofta upp.
Prepositions in Swedish are partly idiomatic, and they don’t always match English directly. For meetings, the standard preposition is på:
- på mötet = at / in the meeting
- Vi diskuterade det på mötet. – We discussed it at the meeting.
i mötet is possible but usually has a more literal sense of being inside the meeting as a process, or in specific fixed expressions, and is much less common in this “topic comes up” sense.
vid mötet can mean “by / at the time of the meeting” or “in connection with the meeting”, but again it’s not the normal choice here.
So for “comes up at the meeting”, you almost always say på mötet.
På mötet can correspond to both “at the meeting” and “in the meeting”, depending on context. Swedish på covers a wide range of situations where English switches between “at” and “in”.
In this sentence:
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
You can naturally translate as:- “This topic often comes up at the meeting.”
- “This topic often comes up in the meeting.”
Both are fine in English; the Swedish original simply uses på.
Möte is a neuter noun:
- ett möte – a meeting
- mötet – the meeting
- möten – meetings
- mötena – the meetings
In på mötet, the -t is the definite ending: the meeting.
Context decides whether this means:
- one specific meeting (e.g. “the Monday meeting” you always have), or
- a recurring, regularly scheduled meeting that everyone knows about.
Native speakers often use a singular definite form like mötet for a regularly recurring, known event:
- På mötet brukar vi fika. – At the (regular) meeting we usually have coffee.
So it can be about one concrete meeting, or an established regular meeting, depending on context.
Yes, you can say:
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet.
- Det här ämnet tas ofta upp på mötet.
They’re both correct but have a slightly different feel:
kommer upp – more neutral/idiomatic, focuses on the topic appearing / arising in the discussion.
- “This topic often comes up at the meeting.”
tas upp – passive of ta upp (“bring up, raise”), highlights that someone brings it up, even if you don’t say who.
- “This topic is often brought up at the meeting.”
In everyday speech, kommer upp is very common and natural. Tas upp can sound a bit more formal or descriptive of the action.
Both are possible, but they’re not identical in nuance:
Det här ämnet – this (particular) topic, pointing to something specific and close in context (maybe just mentioned, or visible on the agenda).
- Det här ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet. – This particular topic often comes up at the meeting.
Ämnet – the topic in a more general way, assuming the listener already knows which one you mean from context.
- Ämnet kommer ofta upp på mötet. – The topic often comes up at the meeting.
So det här adds a deictic, “this one (here)” feeling. Without it, you just have “the topic” with no extra pointing or emphasis.