Questions & Answers about När kommer matchen att sluta?
Why are kommer and att separated by matchen?
In Swedish questions, the verb must come in the second position. The question word När is first, so the auxiliary verb kommer comes second. The subject matchen slips in right after it, pushing the rest of the future verb phrase (att sluta) to the end.
Can I drop the word att here?
Yes! In spoken and informal Swedish, the att in kommer att is very often dropped. It is completely natural to say När kommer matchen sluta? instead.
Does sluta mean 'end' or 'stop'?
It means both! When talking about an event like a match or a movie, it translates to 'end' or 'finish'. If you are talking about a person's action, it means 'stop' or 'quit' (like sluta prata, meaning 'stop talking').
What is the root word for matchen?
The root word is en match (a match or game). Because the speaker is asking about a specific game, they add the definite ending -en to make it matchen (the match).