The Infinitive Form and Marker (att)
The infinitive is the base dictionary form of a verb. In Swedish, most infinitive verbs end in -a.
When connecting two verbs—like saying you love to sleep or try to write—conjugate the first verb and leave the second in the infinitive. Just like in English, place the infinitive marker att (to) before the second verb.
| I love to sleep in the bed. | Jag älskar att sova i sängen. |
Use this structure to express preferences, such as what you love (älska) or like (tycka om) to do.
| The woman likes to sing the song. | Kvinnan tycker om att sjunga låten. |
| We like to rest here. | Vi tycker om att vila här. |
Trying, Starting, and Stopping
The same pattern applies when attempting an action or changing an activity. Verbs like försöka (to try), börja (to start), and sluta (to stop) take att plus an infinitive verb.
| The boy is trying to write the letter. | Pojken försöker att skriva brevet. |
| We are starting to clean the house now. | Vi börjar att städa huset nu. |
| The child stops playing today. | Barnet slutar att leka idag. |
Negation and Questions
In questions and negative statements, standard word order rules apply to the first (conjugated) verb. The att + infinitive phrase simply follows.
For negatives, inte (not) typically comes after the first verb.
| The cat does not try to sleep. | Katten försöker inte att sova. |
For questions, swap the subject and the first verb.
| Do they stop writing now? | Slutar de att skriva nu? |