Domaren talar med tränaren.

Because -en is the definite singular ending for many common-gender Swedish nouns.

• domare = judge / referee
• domaren = the judge / the referee
• tränare = coach / trainer
• tränaren = the coach / the trainer

So instead of putting a separate word like English the before the noun, Swedish often adds the definite ending to the noun itself.

In Swedish, the definite article is usually attached to the noun as a suffix.

So:

• the judge → domaren
• the coach → tränaren

This is one of the first big differences from English. Swedish often says noun + definite ending instead of the + noun.

talar is the present tense of tala, which means to speak.

So:

• tala = to speak
• talar = speaks / is speaking

In this sentence, Domaren talar med tränaren, talar means speaks or is speaking, depending on context.

Yes, often you can, but there is a slight difference in tone.

• tala = more formal, or a bit more neutral in some contexts
• prata = more everyday, casual, conversational

So:

• Domaren talar med tränaren = a bit more formal or neutral
• Domaren pratar med tränaren = more everyday speech

Both are natural Swedish, but pratar is very common in daily conversation.

It can mean either, depending on context.

• In a courtroom, domaren usually means the judge
• In sports, domaren often means the referee

So if the sentence appears in a sports context, Domaren talar med tränaren would very likely mean The referee is speaking with the coach.

It can mean both, but in many contexts, especially sports, tränaren is best translated as the coach.

Examples:

• sports team → the coach
• fitness context → sometimes the trainer

So in a sports-related sentence with domaren, tränaren will usually be understood as the coach.

The first noun, domaren, is the subject here, so domaren is the one doing the speaking.

• Domaren talar med tränaren = The judge/referee speaks with the coach
• Tränaren talar med domaren = The coach speaks with the judge/referee

Even though speak with is fairly mutual in meaning, grammatically the subject is still the noun before the verb in this basic sentence.

med means with.

So:

• talar med = speaks with
• pratar med = talks with

It introduces the person the subject is speaking with:

• Domaren talar med tränaren = The referee/judge is speaking with the coach/trainer

The dictionary forms are:

• domaren → domare
• talar → tala
• med → med
• tränaren → tränare

This is useful because Swedish words often appear with endings attached, especially nouns and verbs.

The ä in tränaren is pronounced somewhat like the vowel in English air or bed, depending on accent and exact sound quality. It is not pronounced like English a in cat.

A rough guide:

• tränaren ≈ TREH-na-ren

Very roughly syllable by syllable:

• trä
• na
• ren

Also, the stress is mainly at the beginning: TRÄ-na-ren.

Because the ending here is grammatical, not part of the core meaning.

Both domare and tränare are common-gender nouns, so when they are definite singular, they both take -en:

• domare → domaren
• tränare → tränaren

The ending tells you the, not what kind of person it is.

Yes, in their indefinite form, they can look the same in singular and plural.

For example:

• en domare = a judge / a referee

• domare = judges / referees

• en tränare = a coach / a trainer
• tränare = coaches / trainers

But in your sentence, domaren and tränaren are clearly singular definite, so there is no ambiguity there.

Yes, but Swedish word order follows rules. In a normal main clause, the verb usually stays in the second position.

Basic order:

• Domaren talar med tränaren.

If you move something else to the front, the verb still stays second:

• Med tränaren talar domaren.

That version is possible, but much less natural in everyday speech unless you are emphasizing med tränaren. The basic sentence is the most normal one.

Yes. You can tell because their singular indefinite form takes en:

• en domare
• en tränare

And their definite singular form becomes:

• domaren
• tränaren

So these are common-gender nouns, not neuter nouns.