Han visar omtanke när barnet gråter.

Because han is the subject form of he.

In this sentence, han is the one doing the action:

• Han visar omtanke.
• He shows care.

Swedish, like English, has different forms for subject and object:

• han = he
• honom = him

So:

• Han visar omtanke = He shows care
• Jag ser honom = I see him

Here, he is doing the showing, so han is correct.

Literally, visar means shows, and omtanke means something like consideration, care, or thoughtfulness.

So visar omtanke is very close to:

• shows care
• shows consideration
• is caring / considerate

In natural English, you would often translate the whole phrase more smoothly rather than word-for-word.

A useful point: Swedish often uses visa + noun in places where English might prefer an adjective or a different phrasing.

Examples:

• visa intresse = show interest
• visa respekt = show respect
• visa omtanke = show care / be caring

Because omtanke is being used in a general, uncountable sense here.

In English, we also often omit the article with abstract nouns:

• show care
• show respect
• show patience

Similarly in Swedish:

• visa omtanke
• visa respekt
• ha tålamod

So omtanke here does not mean a care or one caring act. It means care/thoughtfulness as a general quality.

If you add an article, the meaning usually becomes more specific:

• en omtanke can mean a thoughtful act or a consideration, depending on context

But in this sentence, the abstract idea is meant, so no article is used.

Barnet is the definite singular form of barn, meaning the child.

• barn = child / children, depending on context
• ett barn = a child
• barnet = the child

So the sentence refers to a specific child:

• när barnet gråter = when the child is crying / cries

Swedish often puts definiteness directly on the noun as a suffix:

• bok = book
• boken = the book

For neuter nouns like barn, the definite ending is usually -et:

• barn → barnet

This is a very common question because barn is unusual from an English perspective.

The word barn can be:

• singular indefinite: ett barn = a child
• plural indefinite: barn = children

So the bare form barn can look the same in singular and plural.

The definite form helps clarify:

• barnet = the child
• barnen = the children

In your sentence, barnet clearly means the child, singular.

Because gråter is the present tense of the verb gråta (to cry).

Swedish verbs do not change for person the way English does. So the same present-tense form is used for I, you, he, she, we, and they.

For gråta:

• infinitive: gråta = to cry
• present: gråter = cry / is crying
• past: grät = cried
• supine: gråtit = cried

Examples:

• Jag gråter = I cry / am crying
• Du gråter = you cry / are crying
• Barnet gråter = the child cries / is crying

So -er here is just the normal present-tense form of this verb.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Swedish present tense often covers both:

• simple present: cries
• present progressive: is crying

So:

• barnet gråter can mean the child cries
• or the child is crying

In this sentence, many English speakers would naturally understand it as:

• when the child is crying

because that fits the situation well. But grammatically, Swedish does not need a separate form like English is crying.

Here när means when.

It introduces a time clause:

• när barnet gråter = when the child cries / is crying

Depending on context, när can sometimes feel like when in a single situation or whenever in a repeated/general situation.

So this sentence could be understood as:

• He shows care when the child cries
• or He shows care whenever the child cries

The exact nuance depends on the wider context, but when is the basic meaning.

Because in Swedish subordinate clauses usually have normal subject + verb order.

So after när:

• när barnet gråter = when the child cries

not:

• när gråter barnet

The pattern is:

• subordinating word + subject + verb

Examples:

• när barnet gråter = when the child cries
• om han kommer = if he comes
• att hon är här = that she is here

By contrast, main clauses in Swedish follow the V2 rule, where the finite verb is in the second position.

Then the main clause must follow Swedish V2 word order, so the verb comes before the subject in the main clause.

So:

• Han visar omtanke när barnet gråter.

can become:

• När barnet gråter visar han omtanke.

Notice what happened:

• not När barnet gråter han visar omtanke
• but När barnet gråter visar han omtanke

This is a very important Swedish rule: when something other than the subject comes first in the main clause, the finite verb still stays in second position.

Yes. Swedish has several similar expressions, but they are not always exactly identical in tone.

For example:

• Han visar omtanke = He shows care / is considerate
• Han bryr sig = He cares
• Han visar omsorg = He shows care, often with a slightly more practical or nurturing sense

A rough nuance difference:

• omtanke often suggests thoughtfulness, consideration, kindness
• omsorg often suggests care, looking after someone, nurturing attention

So visar omtanke works very naturally if the focus is on being thoughtful and considerate toward the child.

It is an en-word:

• en omtanke

Its definite form is:

• omtanken = the consideration / the thoughtfulness

But in your sentence, it appears without an article because it is being used as an abstract noun:

• visar omtanke

This is very common in Swedish.

A simple approximate pronunciation for an English speaker is:

• Han VEE-sar OM-tang-keh nerr BARN-et GROH-ter

A few notes:

• visar sounds roughly like VEE-sar
• omtanke has stress on the second syllable: om-TAN-ke
• ä in när is somewhat like the vowel in British air, but shorter
• barnet has stress on bar-
• gråter has the vowel å, which is like a long o sound

A more detailed approximation in IPA would be roughly:

• [han ˈviːsar ˈɔmˌtaŋkɛ nɛr ˈbɑːɳɛt ˈɡroːtɛr]

Pronunciation varies somewhat by dialect, but this is a useful general guide.

It can do either, depending on context.

Swedish present tense is flexible. So:

• Han visar omtanke när barnet gråter

could mean:

1. a general pattern/habit
   He shows care whenever the child cries.

2. what is happening in a particular situation
   He shows care when the child is crying.

Without more context, both are possible. This is normal in Swedish.