Infinitive with Att in Swedish

In Brief

Swedish att can mark an infinitive, much as English to does: att läsa means “to read.” However, Swedish leaves att out after modal verbs such as kan, vill, ska, måste, and får: say Jag kan läsa, not Jag kan att läsa. With several other verbs, including börja and försöka, both forms occur, so it is useful to learn complete patterns rather than translate every English “to” mechanically.

Overview

The infinitive is the basic, unconjugated form of a verb—the form listed in a dictionary, such as läsa (“read”), skriva (“write”), or bo (“live”). Swedish often places the infinitive marker att before this form: att läsa, att skriva, att bo. The marker does not change for person or number.

This is an A1 topic because infinitives appear immediately in useful phrases: Jag vill lära mig svenska (“I want to learn Swedish”), Det är svårt att förstå (“It is difficult to understand”), and Jag försöker att komma i tid (“I try to arrive on time”). If you already know the Swedish present tense, remember that the second verb is not in the present tense. Compare hon läser (“she reads”) with hon vill läsa (“she wants to read”).

English is a helpful starting point, but it is not a perfect guide. English sometimes has to where Swedish has no att (can swim / kan simma), and English sometimes uses an -ing form where Swedish naturally uses att + infinitive (She likes reading / Hon gillar att läsa). The Swedish word att also has another job: it can mean “that” and introduce a clause. That distinction is explained below.

How It Works

The basic pattern: att + infinitive

The infinitive marker stands directly before the infinitive:

Pattern	Swedish	English
att + infinitive	att förstå	to understand
att + infinitive	att arbeta	to work
att + infinitive	att vara	to be
att + infinitive	att gå	to go

The verb after att stays in its infinitive form. Do not add a present-tense ending:

• Det är lätt att läsa. — “It is easy to read.”
• not Det är lätt att läser.

After impersonal expressions and adjectives

A very dependable use of att comes after expressions such as det är bra (“it is good”), det är svårt (“it is difficult”), and det är viktigt (“it is important”). Here, the infinitive names the action being evaluated.

Pattern: Det är + adjective + att + infinitive

• Det är bra att veta. — “It is good to know.”
• Det är svårt att välja. — “It is difficult to choose.”
• Det är viktigt att lyssna. — “It is important to listen.”

An infinitive phrase can also act as the topic of the sentence:

• Att resa ensam kan vara spännande. — “Travelling alone can be exciting.”
• Att lära sig ett språk tar tid. — “Learning a language takes time.”

English often uses an -ing form in this position, while Swedish keeps att + infinitive.

After verbs that take an infinitive

Many verbs can be followed by another action. Some commonly use att, especially when the second action functions as the content of the first:

• hoppas att få — hope to get
• försöka (att) förstå — try to understand
• börja (att) arbeta — begin to work
• sluta (att) röka — stop smoking
• älska att läsa — love reading
• gilla att laga mat — like cooking

With försöka, börja, and sluta, both a form with att and a bare infinitive are found: börja att springa and börja springa. The shorter form is very common. At beginner level, both should be understood; imitate the pattern used by reliable speakers and texts rather than inserting att automatically.

No att after modal verbs

A modal verb is a helper verb that expresses ability, desire, obligation, permission, or intention. Swedish modal verbs are followed directly by a bare infinitive—an infinitive without att.

Meaning	Modal	Correct pattern	Example
ability	kan	kan + infinitive	Jag kan simma.
desire	vill	vill + infinitive	Hon vill äta.
plan/intention	ska	ska + infinitive	Vi ska resa.
obligation	måste	måste + infinitive	Du måste vänta.
permission	får	får + infinitive	Ni får komma in.
advice	bör	bör + infinitive	Du bör vila.

The same rule applies when the modal itself changes tense: kunde simma (“could swim”), ville stanna (“wanted to stay”), and skulle ringa (“would call/was going to call”).

Brukar (“usually, be in the habit of”) behaves similarly in present-day standard usage: Vi brukar äta klockan 18. The form brukar att äta also occurs and is represented in the concept examples, but learners will usually sound more idiomatic by omitting att after brukar.

One subject or two?

In an ordinary infinitive construction, the understood subject of the infinitive is usually the same as the subject of the first verb:

• Jag försöker att förstå. — I try; I understand.
• Hon börjar springa. — She begins; she runs.

When another person is meant to perform the second action, Swedish often names that person before the infinitive. The exact pattern depends on the first verb:

• Jag bad honom att vänta. — “I asked him to wait.”
• Vi fick barnen att skratta. — “We got the children to laugh.”
• Hon lät mig gå. — “She let me go.” Notice that låta takes no att here.

These patterns are worth learning as complete units: be någon att göra något, få någon att göra något, and låta någon göra något.

Infinitive att versus conjunction att

The same written word can have two different grammatical jobs.

Job	What follows	Example	Meaning
infinitive marker	an infinitive	Jag gillar att läsa.	I like reading.
conjunction (“that”)	a clause with its own subject and finite verb	Jag vet att hon läser.	I know that she is reading.

A finite verb is a verb marked for tense, such as present läser or past läste. In att läsa, läsa is an infinitive. In att hon läser, hon is a new subject and läser is a present-tense verb. This test prevents many word-order and verb-form errors.

Examples in Context

Swedish	English	Note
Jag försöker att förstå.	I try to understand.	Att introduces the second action.
Det är bra att veta.	It is good to know.	Impersonal expression + infinitive.
Hon börjar att springa.	She starts to run.	Att is possible; börjar springa is also common.
Vi brukar att äta klockan 18.	We usually eat at 6 p.m.	This form occurs, but brukar äta is the usual learner model.
Jag vill lära mig svenska.	I want to learn Swedish.	No att after modal vill.
Kan du hjälpa mig?	Can you help me?	No att after kan.
De måste gå nu.	They have to leave now.	Bare infinitive after måste.
Hon älskar att läsa på tåget.	She loves reading on the train.	English uses -ing naturally here.
Att laga mat tillsammans är roligt.	Cooking together is fun.	The whole infinitive phrase is the topic.
Det tar tid att lära sig uttalet.	It takes time to learn the pronunciation.	Common det tar tid att… pattern.
Vi hoppas att få svar i morgon.	We hope to receive an answer tomorrow.	Hoppas att få is a common compact pattern.
Jag bad henne att ringa senare.	I asked her to call later.	A named person performs the second action.
Han gick utan att säga hej då.	He left without saying goodbye.	utan att means “without doing.”
Jag vet att hon kommer i morgon.	I know that she is coming tomorrow.	Here att means “that”; it does not mark an infinitive.

Common Mistakes

Adding att after a modal verb

• Wrong: Jag kan att simma.
• Right: Jag kan simma.
• Why: Kan is a modal verb and takes a bare infinitive. The same applies to vill, ska, måste, får, and bör.

Using the present tense after att

• Wrong: Det är svårt att förstår.
• Right: Det är svårt att förstå.
• Why: Infinitive att must be followed by the infinitive förstå, not the present form förstår.

Translating every English to as att

• Wrong: Hon vill att gå hem.
• Right: Hon vill gå hem.
• Why: English “to” does not guarantee Swedish att. The Swedish governing verb determines the pattern.

Omitting att from a dependable att pattern

• Wrong: Det är viktigt lyssna.
• Right: Det är viktigt att lyssna.
• Why: After det är + adjective, Swedish normally uses att before the infinitive.

Confusing att + infinitive with att + clause

• Wrong: Jag vet att komma hon i morgon.
• Right: Jag vet att hon kommer i morgon.
• Why: “I know that she is coming” contains a clause with its own subject, hon, and a present-tense verb, kommer. It is not an infinitive phrase.

Treating brukar att as the only pattern

• Less idiomatic as a default: Vi brukar att äta tidigt.
• Recommended: Vi brukar äta tidigt.
• Why: Both patterns can be encountered, but the bare infinitive after brukar is extremely common and is the safest everyday model.

Usage Notes

In speech, infinitive att is commonly pronounced like å, although it is still written att: att göra may sound approximately like å göra. The conjunction att (“that”) is more often pronounced with a clear t. Pronunciation varies with pace and speaker, so use the grammar of the sentence—not sound alone—to identify the word’s function.

Optional att does not always create a clear difference in meaning. Pairs such as börja arbeta / börja att arbeta and försöka förstå / försöka att förstå generally describe the same event. The shorter versions are frequent, especially in speech. In edited prose, preferences can vary by construction and style; there is no need for an A1 learner to force one broad rule onto every verb.

Also note that an adverb or object can belong inside the infinitive phrase: att inte komma (“not to come”), att alltid vara ärlig (“always to be honest”), and att läsa boken (“to read the book”). In simple infinitive phrases, inte normally comes before the infinitive: Jag försöker att inte skratta (“I try not to laugh”).

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master these patterns at A1, but they show how the basic infinitive develops into a larger system.

Prepositions and fixed expressions can introduce an att-infinitive:

• för att spara tid — in order to save time
• utan att fråga — without asking
• i stället för att klaga — instead of complaining
• genom att öva — by practising

These expressions describe purpose, absence, alternatives, or means. They belong to the later topic Infinitive Constructions.

Swedish also has a perfect infinitive, formed with ha plus the supine (the special verb form used after har/hade): Hon verkar ha glömt mötet means “She seems to have forgotten the meeting.” After a modal, there is still no infinitive att: Du borde ha ringt (“You should have called”).

Another advanced contrast concerns clauses and infinitives after evaluative expressions:

• Det är viktigt att lyssna. — “It is important to listen.” General action; no stated listener.
• Det är viktigt att du lyssnar. — “It is important that you listen.” A clause explicitly names du as the listener.

Finally, some verbs select their own construction. Compare be någon att vänta (“ask someone to wait”) with låta någon vänta (“let/make someone wait”). This is why a dictionary example is often more useful than memorising the translation of the verb alone.

Practice Tips

1. Learn two columns. Make one list headed “with att” (det är svårt att…, gilla att…) and another headed “without att” (kan…, vill…, måste…, ska…). Add whole phrases, not isolated words.
2. Transform present-tense sentences. Change Hon läser to Hon vill läsa, Hon kan läsa, and Det är bra att läsa. This trains both the infinitive form and the choice of att.
3. Listen for the second verb. In a short Swedish recording, pause whenever two verbs occur together. Identify the first verb, check whether att is present, and save the complete pattern as one example.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Present Tense (Verb Groups) — helps you distinguish a present-tense verb such as läser from the infinitive läsa.
• Next step: Infinitive Constructions — develops patterns such as för att, utan att, and i stället för att.