Verbs with fixed prepositions (vänta på, bry sig om)

The Preposition Belongs to the Verb

Some Swedish verbs are simply not complete without their preposition. Vänta on its own means to wait; to wait FOR something is always vänta på. You cannot swap the preposition, and you cannot leave it out.

verbmeans
vänta påto wait for
bry sig omto care about
ta hand omto take care of
komma överensto agree, to get along
I am waiting for the bus.
Jag väntar på bussen.

The Reflexive Ones

Bry sig om carries a reflexive pronoun that changes with the subject: jag bryr *mig om, hon bryr **sig om. So do *bestämma sig (to make up your mind) and oroa sig (to worry).

You do not need to worry.
Du behöver inte oroa dig.

Agreeing and Contradicting

Komma överens is to agree — and with om, to agree about something specific. Its opposite is säga emot, to contradict, which pairs with the hålla med you already know.

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