Learn Swedish: Vi håller på att vika kläderna.

In English, we say 'are folding' to show an action is happening right now. Swedish usually just uses the regular present tense (vi viker can mean 'we fold' or 'we are folding'). But to strongly emphasize that you are in the middle of an ongoing action right this second, Swedish uses håller på att (literally 'hold on to') followed by the verb.

Why is the verb vika used here instead of the present tense viker?

The phrase håller på att ends with att (to), which is an infinitive marker. Because of this, the main action verb must be in its infinitive (dictionary) form. That is why we use vika instead of the present tense viker.

How is håller på att vika usually pronounced in casual speech?

In everyday spoken Swedish, the word att is almost always pronounced like the letter 'å'. So, you will usually hear this spoken as håller på å vika. Often, the 'r' at the end of håller is also dropped.

How does the word kläderna get its ending?

The base word is kläder, which means 'clothes'. Like in English, it is a plural word. To say 'the clothes', you add the definite plural ending -na to the end of it, which gives you kläderna.