Breakdown of De har fyrtio gäster på festen.
de
they
ha
to have
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
festen
the party
Questions & Answers about De har fyrtio gäster på festen.
Wait, is De pronounced the way it is spelled?
No! In everyday spoken Swedish, De (they) is almost always pronounced as dom. You will only hear it pronounced as it is spelled in very formal situations or sometimes when reading texts aloud.
Is there a trick to pronouncing fyrtio?
Yes! Even though it is spelled with a 'y' and ends in 'o', Swedes usually pronounce it as förti. The 'y' shifts to an 'ö' sound, and the final 'o' is simply dropped in everyday speech.
How do I form the plural for a word like gäst?
Gäst is an "en-word" (a noun that uses en for "a" or "an"). Many en-words that end in a consonant make their plural by adding -er to the end, which gives us gäster (guests).
Why do we use på for "at" here?
In Swedish, på is the standard preposition to use when you are attending an organized event, like a party (en fest), a concert, or a meeting. It is a set pattern you will see very often for social events!