The Simple Past of Group 2a Verbs
While Group 1 verbs form the past tense by adding -de directly to the infinitive, Group 2a verbs work a little differently.
To form the simple past (preteritum) of a regular Group 2a verb, first drop the -a from the infinitive to find the stem, then add -de.
- köra (to drive) → kör
- de → körde (drove)
- bygga (to build) → bygg
- de → byggde (built)
- hyra (to rent) → hyr
- de → hyrde (rented)
Like all Swedish verbs, the past tense form remains exactly the same no matter who is performing the action.
| The boss drove the customer to the station. | Chefen körde kunden till stationen. |
| We built the house together. | Vi byggde huset tillsammans. |
Work Days and Routines in the Past
Group 2a contains many common verbs that are useful for describing routines, projects, and work days.
Note that when a verb stem already ends in a -d (like använd- from använda), you do not add an extra d; it simply becomes använde.
- använda (to use) → använde (used)
- ställa (to put/place) → ställde (put)
- följa (to follow) → följde (followed)
| Yesterday I used the computer for the report. | Igår använde jag datorn till rapporten. |
| I followed the customer to the door. | Jag följde kunden till dörren. |
| He put the bag on the floor before the break. | Han ställde väskan på golvet innan pausen. |
Combining Actions and Adding Adverbs
Just like with other verbs, you can chain multiple past tense actions together using och (and) to describe a sequence of events.
| My colleague rented the car and drove home. | Min kollega hyrde bilen och körde hem. |
If you want to add an adverb like aldrig (never) or ofta (often) to describe your past routines, place the adverb directly after the verb in a standard main clause.
| We never called the customer. | Vi ringde aldrig kunden. |
| The dog often followed me to work. | Hunden följde mig ofta till jobbet. |