Vem har hyreskontraktet?

Swedish does not use do-support the way English does.

• English: Who has the lease?
• Swedish: Vem har hyreskontraktet?

You simply use the normal present-tense verb har (has / have) directly in the question.

So:

• har = has / have
• no extra word like English do/does

This is very common in Swedish:

• Vad vill du ha? = What do you want?
• Var bor hon? = Where does she live?

Yes. Vem means who, and it is used for people.

Examples:

• Vem är det? = Who is it?
• Vem kommer i morgon? = Who is coming tomorrow?

If you are asking about a thing, Swedish uses vad (what) instead:

• Vad är det? = What is it?

So in Vem har hyreskontraktet?, the speaker is asking which person has the lease.

Because vem is the question word, and here it is also the subject of the sentence.

So the structure is:

• Vem = subject (who)
• har = verb (has)
• hyreskontraktet = object (the lease)

This is very similar to English:

• Who has the lease?

Since who is the subject in English, and vem is the subject in Swedish, the word order stays straightforward.

Compare with a different kind of question:

• Vad har du? = What do you have?

There, vad is the object, not the subject.

Har is the present tense of ha (to have).

So:

• ha = to have
• har = have / has

Examples:

• Jag har en bok. = I have a book.
• Hon har nyckeln. = She has the key.
• Vem har hyreskontraktet? = Who has the lease?

Swedish verbs are nice here because the form does not change depending on the subject:

• jag har
• du har
• han har
• vi har

It is always har in the present tense.

Because Swedish very often makes compound nouns by writing them as one word.

So hyreskontraktet is built from:

• hyres- = rental / rent-related
• kontrakt = contract
• -et = the

So the whole word means the lease or more literally the rental contract.

This is extremely normal in Swedish. English often writes similar ideas as separate words, but Swedish usually combines them:

• sjukhus = hospital
• vardagsrum = living room
• hyreskontrakt = rental contract / lease

The -et is the definite article suffix, meaning the.

In Swedish, the is usually added to the end of the noun instead of standing as a separate word.

So:

• ett hyreskontrakt = a lease
• hyreskontraktet = the lease

This is one of the most important features of Swedish nouns.

More examples:

• ett hus = a house

• huset = the house

• en bok = a book
• boken = the book

Since hyreskontrakt is an ett-word, its definite ending is -et.

Because Swedish usually puts definiteness on the noun itself.

So English:

• the lease

Swedish:

• hyreskontraktet

The the meaning is already included in -et.

You should not say:

• det hyreskontraktet in this sentence

That would mean something more like that lease or that particular lease, depending on context, not just ordinary the lease.

It is an ett-word.

That is why you get:

• ett hyreskontrakt = a lease
• hyreskontraktet = the lease

If it were an en-word, the definite form would normally end in -en instead.

For learners, it helps to remember the base noun:

• ett kontrakt = a contract

Since the head noun is kontrakt, the compound follows that gender:

• ett hyreskontrakt

Hyres- relates to rent or rental.

It comes from hyra, which can mean rent. In compounds, Swedish often changes the form a little, and here you get hyres-.

So:

• hyra = rent
• hyreskontrakt = rental contract / lease
• hyresgäst = tenant
• hyreshus = rental building / apartment building

The -s- in hyres- is a common linking element in Swedish compounds.

Yes. In many contexts, both translations work.

More literal:

• hyreskontraktet = the rental contract

More natural in many English situations:

• the lease

Which translation sounds best depends on context:

• If you are talking casually about an apartment agreement, the lease is often the most natural English choice.
• If you want to be more explicit or formal, the rental contract also works.

A rough learner-friendly guide is:

HY-res-kon-TRAK-tet

A few pronunciation notes:

• y in Swedish is not like English y. It is a rounded vowel with no exact English equivalent.
• The stress is mainly on trak in kontrakt, but compounds can have an earlier secondary stress too.
• The final -et is usually said clearly but not heavily stressed.

You do not need perfect pronunciation right away. A good goal is to say it smoothly as one word: hyreskontraktet

If needed, you can practice in parts:

• hyres
• kontrakt
• hyreskontraktet

Yes, if the context already makes it clear which contract you mean.

• Vem har hyreskontraktet? = Who has the lease?
• Vem har kontraktet? = Who has the contract?

Using hyreskontraktet is more specific. It tells us that this is a rental/lease contract, not just any contract.

So if there is no risk of confusion, kontraktet may be enough. If you want precision, hyreskontraktet is better.

It is completely natural and can be used in everyday speech.

It is neither especially formal nor especially slangy. You could hear it in many ordinary situations, for example:

• among roommates
• during an apartment search
• when discussing who is officially on the lease

If you wanted a slightly simpler or more casual version in the right context, you might hear:

• Vem har kontraktet?

But Vem har hyreskontraktet? is perfectly normal Swedish.

Yes, depending on context, that may be the most natural English interpretation.

Literally, the Swedish sentence asks:

• Who has the lease / rental contract?

But in real life, if people are talking about an apartment, they may really mean:

• Who holds the lease?
• Who is on the lease?
• Who has the lease in their name?

So the exact English phrasing can shift a little depending on the situation, even though the Swedish sentence stays the same.

Yes. In normal writing, Swedish uses a question mark just like English does.

So:

• Vem har hyreskontraktet?

In speech, the sentence is also marked by question intonation, but the written punctuation is the same idea as in English.