Learn Swedish: Han sitter och läser medan jag står och vattnar. - He is sitting and reading while I am standing and watering.

Swedish doesn't have an "-ing" form like English to show that an action is ongoing. Instead, it often pairs a posture verb like sitter (sits), står (stands), or ligger (lies) with och (and) plus the main action. So, sitter och läser literally means "sits and reads," but it functions just like the English "is reading."

Could I just say Han läser medan jag vattnar without the sitting and standing parts?

Yes, you absolutely can. Han läser medan jag vattnar means "He reads while I water," which is grammatically correct. However, adding sitter och and står och makes it sound much more natural in Swedish. It emphasizes that the actions are happening right now and creates a nice contrast between the two activities.

Why are both verbs in the present tense (sitter and läser) instead of using an infinitive?

In this ongoing action structure, the two verbs are simply joined by och (and), so they must match in tense. Since he is currently sitting, sitter is in the present tense, and therefore läser must also be in the present tense. If it were in the past, both would change: Han satt och läste (He was sitting and reading).

Is the verb vattnar related to the word for water?