Efter mötet började jag gäspa, och min kollega bara suckade.

Because efter usually refers to a specific event here: the meeting.

• möte = a meeting
• mötet = the meeting

So efter mötet means after the meeting.

In Swedish, the definite article is often attached to the end of the noun:

• en bok = a book
• boken = the book

The same happens here:

• ett möte = a meeting
• mötet = the meeting

Because möte is a neuter noun in Swedish, so it takes -t / -et in the definite singular.

• ett möte = a meeting
• mötet = the meeting

This is different from common-gender (en) nouns, which usually take -en in the definite singular:

• en kollega = a colleague
• kollegan = the colleague

After börja (to begin/start), Swedish commonly uses the infinitive without att.

So:

• börja gäspa = begin to yawn
• börja läsa = begin to read
• börja jobba = start working

You may sometimes hear börja att in Swedish, but in ordinary modern usage, especially in simple sentences like this, börja + infinitive without att is the most natural choice.

It is the infinitive form: to yawn.

In Swedish, after verbs like börja, vilja, kunna, måste, and many others, the next verb is often in the infinitive:

• Jag började gäspa. = I started to yawn.
• Jag vill sova. = I want to sleep.
• Jag kan simma. = I can swim.

So började is the finite verb, and gäspa stays in the infinitive.

This is because Swedish follows the V2 rule in main clauses. That means the finite verb normally comes in the second position.

Here, Efter mötet is placed first. Once that happens, the finite verb must come next:

• Efter mötet | började | jag | gäspa

So the structure is correct because:

1. Efter mötet = first element
2. började = second position
3. jag = comes after the verb

Compare:

• Jag började gäspa efter mötet.
• Efter mötet började jag gäspa.

Both are correct, but when the time phrase comes first, the verb still has to stay in second position.

Och means and. It joins two main clauses:

• Efter mötet började jag gäspa
• min kollega bara suckade

So the whole sentence is made of two coordinated parts:

• After the meeting, I started yawning
• and my colleague just sighed

This is very similar to English.

Here bara means something like just, simply, or all they did was.

So:

• min kollega bara suckade

suggests something like:

• my colleague just sighed
• my colleague simply sighed
• my colleague only sighed

It often adds a nuance of attitude, like resignation, annoyance, or lack of surprise.

For example:

• Han bara skrattade. = He just laughed.
• Hon bara gick därifrån. = She just walked away.

So in this sentence, bara is not really about strict logical limitation; it helps convey tone.

Suckade is the simple past (preterite), which is very commonly used in Swedish for completed actions in the past.

• suckade = sighed
• började = began / started

Swedish often uses the simple past in places where English might also use simple past:

• Jag åt lunch. = I ate lunch.
• Hon kom sent. = She arrived late.

Har suckat is the present perfect (has sighed / have sighed), which would be used in different contexts, usually when the action is connected more directly to the present.

Because the sentence says min kollega (my colleague), and possessives like min, din, hans, hennes, vår usually replace the separate definite ending.

So Swedish normally says:

• min kollega = my colleague
• not min kollegan

Similarly:

• min bok = my book
• not min boken

This is a very important pattern in Swedish: possessives generally make the noun definite in meaning without using the definite suffix.

Because grammatical gender in Swedish is not the same as natural gender.

Kollega is a common-gender noun, so it takes:

• en kollega
• min kollega

This does not mean the colleague is female. The word can refer to a man, a woman, or a person of unspecified gender.

So here:

• min kollega = my colleague

The form depends on the noun’s grammatical gender, not the person’s sex.

In Swedish, commas before och are often not required when joining two main clauses, especially in short, straightforward sentences.

So this sentence could also be written as:

• Efter mötet började jag gäspa och min kollega bara suckade.

The comma here is mainly a stylistic choice to make the pause clearer. It is not unusual, but many writers would leave it out.

Yes, but changing its position can slightly change the emphasis.

In your sentence:

• min kollega bara suckade

This sounds natural and conversational.

Other positions are possible in Swedish, depending on focus and style, for example:

• min kollega suckade bara
• bara min kollega suckade

These do not all mean exactly the same thing.

• min kollega bara suckade = my colleague just sighed
• min kollega suckade bara = my colleague only sighed
• bara min kollega suckade = only my colleague sighed

So word order matters for nuance.

A more neutral order would be:

• Jag började gäspa efter mötet, och min kollega bara suckade.

This starts with the subject jag, which is very typical and neutral.

The original sentence:

• Efter mötet började jag gäspa, och min kollega bara suckade.

puts focus first on the time phrase after the meeting. That makes the setting feel a little more prominent. Both versions are natural.