Learn Swedish: Mannen måste åka snart. - The man must leave soon.

Most present tense verbs in Swedish end in -r (like talar or äter). However, måste is an exception. It is a modal verb, and its present tense form just stays måste without an added -r.

Why is the second verb just åka and not åker or att åka?

After a modal verb like måste (must), the second verb is always in the bare infinitive. This means you use the base dictionary form (åka) without a present tense -r and without the word att (to) before it. It matches English perfectly: we say "must leave", not "must to leave".

I learned that åka means "to go" or "to travel". Can it also mean "to leave"?

Yes! While åka technically means "to go" or "travel" (usually by a vehicle), Swedes very often use it to mean "leave" or "head out" in everyday speech. Saying måste åka is exactly like saying "must get going" in English.

How does the word mannen work to mean "the man"?

The base word is en man (a man). Because it is an en-word, we attach -en to the end of the word to make it definite (the man). Notice that the n is doubled to become mannen for spelling reasons, which keeps the vowel sound short.