Breakdown of På söndagar brukar vi gå till marknaden med en stor påse och komma hem med två kilo frukt.
Questions & Answers about På söndagar brukar vi gå till marknaden med en stor påse och komma hem med två kilo frukt.
Why does the sentence start with På söndagar instead of Vi brukar?
Because Swedish often puts a time expression first. When that happens, the finite verb must still stay in the second position.
So:
- Vi brukar gå till marknaden på söndagar = the neutral order
- På söndagar brukar vi gå till marknaden = same meaning, but with the time phrase emphasized first
This is a very common Swedish word-order pattern called V2 word order. If something other than the subject comes first, the verb comes before the subject.
Why is it på söndagar and not på söndag?
På söndagar means on Sundays / on Sundays in general, so it describes a repeated habit.
Compare:
- på söndag = on Sunday (one specific upcoming Sunday, depending on context)
- på söndagar = on Sundays (regularly, as a habit)
The plural form is often used in Swedish for repeated time expressions:
- på måndagar = on Mondays
- på kvällarna = in the evenings
- om vintrarna = in the winters / during wintertime
What does brukar mean here?
Brukar means usually, tend to, or be in the habit of.
So brukar vi gå means we usually go or we tend to go.
It is a very common Swedish way to talk about habits:
- Jag brukar läsa på kvällen = I usually read in the evening
- Hon brukar cykla till jobbet = She usually bikes to work
In this sentence, brukar shows that going to the market is something the speakers do regularly.
Why is it brukar vi gå and not brukar vi att gå?
Because brukar is followed directly by the infinitive, without att.
So:
- brukar gå
- brukar komma
- brukar läsa
This is just how the verb works in Swedish. Some verbs take att before the infinitive, and some do not. Brukar belongs to the group that does not use att.
Why are gå and komma in the infinitive form?
They are in the infinitive because they depend on brukar, which is the conjugated verb in the sentence.
In brukar vi gå ... och komma hem ..., the verb brukar carries the tense, and the other verbs stay in the infinitive:
- brukar gå
- brukar komma
This is similar to English structures like usually go and usually come home, where the main idea of tense/habit is carried by usually plus the verb pattern, not by conjugating every verb separately.
Does brukar apply to both gå and komma hem?
Yes. In this sentence, brukar applies to both verbs:
- brukar vi gå till marknaden
- (brukar vi) komma hem med två kilo frukt
The second brukar vi is simply omitted because it would be repetitive. This is very natural in Swedish.
So the full idea is:
On Sundays, we usually go to the market with a big bag and come home with two kilos of fruit.
Why is it till marknaden and not just marknaden?
Till means to, and it marks movement toward a destination.
So:
- gå till marknaden = go to the market
- åka till stan = go to town
- komma till skolan = arrive at school / come to school
Swedish often uses till where English uses to for movement toward a place.
Why is it marknaden and not en marknad?
Marknaden is the definite form, meaning the market.
That suggests a specific market that both speaker and listener can identify, or simply the regular local market they usually go to.
Compare:
- gå till en marknad = go to a market (any market, non-specific)
- gå till marknaden = go to the market (a specific/known one)
Swedish uses the definite ending on the noun itself:
- en marknad = a market
- marknaden = the market
Why is med used twice, and does it mean the same thing both times?
It is the same word, but the meaning is slightly different in each place.
- med en stor påse = with a big bag
Here it means carrying / bringing - med två kilo frukt = with two kilos of fruit
Here it means having / bringing back
So med has a broad meaning like with, but the exact sense depends on context.
This is very common in Swedish, just as in English:
- I went with a bag
- I came home with fruit
What is påse, and why is it en stor påse?
Påse means bag, usually a sack, shopping bag, or similar soft container.
It is a common-gender noun, so it takes en:
- en påse = a bag
- påsen = the bag
In en stor påse, the adjective stor stays in its basic form because it follows an en-word in the singular indefinite:
- en stor påse
- en liten påse
If it were a ett-word, the adjective would often add -t:
- ett stort hus
Why is it komma hem and not komma till hemmet?
Because hem is a special adverb-like word meaning home in the sense of destination or location, and Swedish very often uses it without a preposition.
So:
- komma hem = come home
- gå hem = go home
- vara hemma = be at home
Using till hemmet would sound unnatural in ordinary speech unless you mean the home in a special sense, such as an institution or residence.
Why is it två kilo frukt and not två kilo frukter?
Because after measurements, Swedish often uses the substance noun in a general, uncountable sense.
So:
- två kilo frukt = two kilos of fruit
- ett kilo ris = a kilo of rice
- tre liter mjölk = three liters of milk
Here frukt is treated as a mass or category, not as individual countable fruits.
If you said frukter, that would focus more on separate fruits as countable items, and it would sound less natural in this context.
Why is there no word for of in två kilo frukt?
Swedish often leaves out of in measurement expressions where English may include it.
So Swedish says:
- två kilo frukt
- en liter mjölk
- fem meter tyg
Literally, this is more like two kilos fruit, but idiomatically it means two kilos of fruit.
This is a very normal Swedish structure.
Can the sentence also be said as Vi brukar gå till marknaden på söndagar?
Yes, absolutely. That is also correct.
Compare:
- Vi brukar gå till marknaden på söndagar = more neutral starting point
- På söndagar brukar vi gå till marknaden = puts the time phrase first for emphasis or flow
Both are natural. The main difference is word order and what comes first in the sentence, not the core meaning.
Is this a typical way to express a routine in Swedish?
Yes, very typical. The sentence uses several common Swedish habits of expression:
- a time phrase first: På söndagar
- brukar for routine: brukar vi gå
- infinitives after brukar: gå, komma
- a destination with till
- measurement without of: två kilo frukt
So this is a very natural, everyday Swedish sentence.
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