Breakdown of På restaurangen äter de tillsammans.
de
they
tillsammans
together
äta
to eat
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
Questions & Answers about På restaurangen äter de tillsammans.
Why is the word order äter de (eat they) instead of de äter (they eat)?
This is the famous Swedish V2 rule in action! In Swedish, the verb must be the second piece of information in the sentence. Because this sentence starts with the location phrase På restaurangen (At the restaurant), the verb äter must come right after it. This pushes the subject de into the third position.
How do I pronounce de in this sentence?
Even though it is spelled de, it is almost always pronounced dom in spoken Swedish. Native speakers will naturally say På restaurangen äter dom tillsammans.
Why is there an -en at the end of restaurangen?
In Swedish, the word for "the" isn't a separate word placed before the noun; instead, it attaches to the end of the word. En restaurang means a restaurant, and adding the suffix -en turns it into restaurangen, meaning the restaurant.
Why do we use the preposition på here? Doesn't that usually mean "on"?
While på often translates to "on", it is also the standard preposition used for many public places, businesses, and institutions when you are there to do an activity. You will frequently see på used to mean "at" for places like a restaurant, a café, or the cinema.