Learn Swedish: Det finns snö överallt på trottoaren. - There is snow everywhere on the sidewalk.

In Swedish, det finns is the standard way to say 'there is' or 'there are' when you are talking about the physical presence or existence of something. You only use det är when saying 'it is', such as in det är snö (it is snow).

Why does the verb finns end in an -s?

The verb comes from att finna (to find). Adding the -s makes it passive, so det finns literally translates to 'it is found'. However, it is used as a fixed, everyday phrase for 'there is' or 'there are', and its form doesn't change even if there are multiple things.

How is the word överallt (everywhere) built?

It is a compound word made of över (over) and allt (everything or all). Put together, it literally translates to 'over all', giving us the meaning 'everywhere'.

What is the base form of the word trottoaren?

The base noun is en trottoar (a sidewalk). Because it is an en-word, we add the suffix -en to the end to make it definite, giving us trottoaren (the sidewalk).