Tavlan hänger ovanför soffan.

Because they are in the definite singular form: the painting and the sofa.

In Swedish, the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word like the in English.

• en tavla = a painting / a picture

• tavlan = the painting / the picture

• en soffa = a sofa
• soffan = the sofa

Both tavla and soffa are en-words (common gender nouns), so their definite singular form here takes -n.

Hänger is the present tense of the verb hänga, which means to hang.

So:

• hänga = to hang
• hänger = hangs / is hanging

In this sentence, hänger describes the painting’s position.

Swedish often uses position verbs where English might simply use is.

So instead of saying something like The painting is above the sofa, Swedish naturally says The painting hangs above the sofa.

This is very common in Swedish:

• things that are upright often står = stand
• things that are lying down often ligger = lie
• things attached or suspended often hänger = hang

So Tavlan hänger ovanför soffan sounds natural because a painting is typically on the wall in a hanging position.

Ovanför means above.

It usually refers to something being in a higher position than something else.

• ovanför soffan = above the sofa

Compared with över, ovanför is often more specifically about position.
Över can also mean over, but it has broader uses and can sometimes suggest movement or a more general relationship.

In a sentence like this, ovanför is a very natural choice for physical location.

The basic order is:

subject + verb + adverbial/place phrase

So here:

• Tavlan = subject
• hänger = verb
• ovanför soffan = place phrase

This is a very normal Swedish main clause order.

Here it describes a state/location, not an active action.

The sentence does not mean that the painting is in the middle of being hung up right now. It means that the painting is hanging there as its current position.

So this is more like:

• The painting hangs above the sofa or
• The painting is hanging above the sofa

It would be:

En tavla hänger ovanför en soffa.

That means A painting hangs above a sofa.

Compare:

• Tavlan hänger ovanför soffan. = The painting hangs above the sofa.
• En tavla hänger ovanför en soffa. = A painting hangs above a sofa.

Not always.

Tavla can mean several related things, depending on context, such as:

• painting
• picture
• board
• sometimes chart or sign

In a sentence like Tavlan hänger ovanför soffan, the most natural meaning is usually painting or picture, because that is something you would expect to hang above a sofa.

So the exact English word depends on context.

You add inte after the verb:

Tavlan hänger inte ovanför soffan.

That means:

The painting is not hanging above the sofa.

In a simple main clause, inte usually comes after the finite verb.

In Swedish main questions, the verb usually comes first:

Hänger tavlan ovanför soffan?

That means:

Is the painting hanging above the sofa?
or
Does the painting hang above the sofa?

This is a standard Swedish yes/no question pattern: verb + subject + rest

A rough guide for an English speaker:

• Tavlan ≈ TAHV-lan
• hänger ≈ HENG-er
  
  • the ä sounds somewhat like the vowel in English bed, though not exactly
• ovanför ≈ oh-van-FUR
• soffan ≈ SOF-fan

A few helpful notes:

• Swedish å in ovanför sounds roughly like aw or a broad o
• Swedish ä in hänger is similar to e in bed
• The r sound varies depending on accent

The exact pronunciation depends on dialect, but those approximations will get you fairly close.