Title: Övning 1 Hjälpverb / Task 1 Auxiliary verbs
Course: Communication and interaction in mother tongue, Swedish as a second language > Section: 1 - Communication

Hjälpverb, teori/Auxiliary verbs, theory

Sometimes you only need one verb in a sentence, a main verb.

For example: Jag dricker kaffe (I drink coffee)

Other times another verb is needed in the sentence, for example an auxiliary verb.

Auxiliary verbs are only used before a main verb.

The auxiliary verbs in Swedish are: kan, vill, ska, måste, brukar, får, bör.

We can use them in a sentence like this: Jag vill dricka kaffe (I want to drink coffee)

Vill is an auxiliary verb and dricka is a main verb. The main verb always stands in the infinitive form after an auxiliary verb:  Jag vill dricka, jag vill sjunga, jag vill äta.

Kan | Jag kan spela piano | I can play the piano
Ska | Jag ska åka till Vasa i kväll | I will go to Vasa tonight
Vill | Jag vill ha en paus | I want to have a break
Måste | Jag måste följa reglerna | I have to follow the rules
Borde | Jag borde sluta röka | I should stop smoking
Brukar | Jag brukar vakna kl. 7 | I usually wake up at 7 am.
Får | Jag får parkera bilen här | I am allowed to park my car here

ADVANCED

Auxiliary verbs that sometimes also are used as main verbs. Here as auxiliary verbs:

Får | Du får parkera här. | You are allowed to park here
 | Får jag gå på toaletten? | Can I go to the toilet? (You ask for permission)
Tänker | Jag tänker flytta till Vasa. | I am going to move to Vasa/I will move to Vasa (a plan, an intention)
Behöver | Jag behöver lära mig mera svenska | I need to learn more Swedish.
Börjar | Jag börjar studera i höst | I start studying in the Autumn.
Slutar | Jag slutar arbeta kl. 14 | I finish working at 14:00.

Auxiliary verbs used as main verbs:

Lena får en blomma på sin födelsedag. (Lena gets a flower for her birthday.)

Jag tänker ofta på dig. (I often think about you.)

Vi behöver mera mjöl till kakan.  (We need more flour for the cake)

Filmen börjar snart. (The movie starts soon)

Skolan slutar klockan 14 varje dag. (School ends at two every day)