Breakdown of Sluta snacka och lyssna nu!
och
and
nu
now
sluta
to stop
lyssna
to listen
snacka
to chat (colloquial)
Questions & Answers about Sluta snacka och lyssna nu!
Why is snacka in the infinitive but lyssna in the imperative?
Both sluta (stop) and lyssna (listen) are direct commands, so they are in the imperative form. Snacka (chat) is the action being stopped, so it takes the infinitive form. While English uses the '-ing' form ('chatting'), Swedish uses the infinitive.
Why is there no att before snacka?
The verb sluta is one of several Swedish verbs that can take a bare infinitive directly after it without using att (to). This is the standard way to say 'stop doing something' in Swedish.
What is the difference between snacka and prata?
Snacka is a very common, colloquial word for 'talk' or 'chat,' while prata is the standard, neutral word. Using snacka here makes the sentence sound more informal and conversational.
How would a native speaker pronounce och in this sentence?
In relaxed, everyday spoken Swedish, the word och (and) is almost always pronounced just as 'å'. You will typically hear this sentence spoken as 'Sluta snacka å lyssna nu!'
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