Breakdown of Utvecklingssamtalet börjar efter lunchen.
lunchen
the lunch
efter
after
börja
to begin
utvecklingssamtalet
the employee development review
Questions & Answers about Utvecklingssamtalet börjar efter lunchen.
Why is utvecklingssamtalet written as one long word?
Because Swedish usually writes compound nouns as one word, where English often uses two or more words.
So:
- utveckling = development
- samtal = conversation / talk
Together they form utvecklingssamtal.
Then the definite ending is added:
- ett utvecklingssamtal = a development talk / review meeting
- utvecklingssamtalet = the development talk / review meeting
This is very normal in Swedish. If you split a compound incorrectly, it can look odd or even change the meaning.
What is the -s- doing in utvecklingssamtalet?
That -s- is a linking sound used in many Swedish compounds. It is often called a linking s.
So the structure is roughly:
- utveckling
- s
- samtal
- et
This -s- does not have a separate meaning by itself here. It just helps connect the parts in a way that sounds natural in Swedish.
You will see this in many compounds, but not all of them. Unfortunately, it is something you often learn word by word.
Why does the sentence use -et in utvecklingssamtalet and -en in lunchen?