Temporal Conjunctions in Swedish

In Brief

Swedish uses när “when,” medan “while,” innan “before,” efter att “after,” sedan “since,” and tills “until” to relate one event to another in time. These words usually introduce a subordinate clause, so sentence adverbs such as inte come before the finite verb: när du inte har tid. When the time clause comes first, the main clause begins with its finite verb: När jag kom hem ringde telefonen.

Overview

A temporal conjunction, called a tidskonjunktion in Swedish, connects clauses by showing when events occur, in what order they happen, or how long a situation lasts. A clause is a group of words with its own subject and verb. In Vi äter när hon kommer (“We’ll eat when she arrives”), när hon kommer is a subordinate clause: it depends on the main clause to complete the message.

At B1, these conjunctions let you move beyond short, separate statements and describe routines, instructions, memories, and plans as connected sequences. Their basic meanings resemble their English equivalents, but the grammar does not always match English. Swedish subordinate-clause word order is especially important, and Swedish normally uses a present-tense form after när, innan, and tills when the meaning is future.

The six items also express different time relationships. När locates an event or period, medan presents simultaneous events, innan and efter att establish order, sedan marks a starting point that continues up to a later reference point, and tills marks an endpoint.

How It Works

The main conjunctions

Conjunction	Core meaning	Typical relationship
när	when	an event happens at a particular time, or whenever something happens
medan	while	two situations overlap in time
innan	before	the time-clause event is later than the other event
efter att	after	the time-clause event is earlier than the other event
sedan	since	a situation extends from a past starting point
tills	until	an action or state continues up to an endpoint

A time clause can follow the main clause:

main clause + time clause
Jag diskar medan du lagar mat.
“I’ll wash up while you cook.”

It can also come first:

time clause + main clause
Medan du lagar mat diskar jag.
“While you cook, I’ll wash up.”

The choice changes what is presented as the starting point of the sentence, but it usually does not change the basic time relationship.

Word order inside the time clause: the BIFF rule

A finite verb is the verb form that carries tense, such as kommer, kom, har, or hade. In a Swedish main clause, a sentence adverb such as inte normally follows the finite verb:

• Main clause: Hon kommer inte i dag. — “She is not coming today.”
• Subordinate clause: när hon inte kommer i dag — “when she is not coming today”

Learners often remember this as BIFF: I Bisats kommer Inte Före det Finita verbet (“In a subordinate clause, inte comes before the finite verb”). The same position is used by many other sentence adverbs, including aldrig “never,” alltid “always,” redan “already,” and kanske “perhaps”:

• medan han fortfarande arbetar — “while he is still working”
• innan vi aldrig mer kan ses — “before we can never see each other again”
• när hon redan har gått — “when she has already left”

The subject normally comes directly after the conjunction: conjunction + subject + sentence adverb + finite verb.

When the time clause comes first: inversion in the main clause

Swedish main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb occupies the second grammatical position. An initial time clause fills the first position, so the verb must come before the subject in the main clause:

• När jag kom hem ringde telefonen.
• Efter att mötet var slut gick vi och fikade.
• Tills du är frisk kan du arbeta hemifrån.

Do not copy the English order “when …, the phone rang” as när …, telefonen ringde. Swedish requires ringde telefonen here. In modern Swedish, a comma after a short initial subordinate clause is generally optional rather than required; use one when it improves readability, especially after a long clause.

När: “when” and repeated occasions

Use när both for a particular occasion and for repeated situations:

• När tåget kom steg vi på. — “When the train arrived, we got on.”
• När jag är trött dricker jag te. — “When I’m tired, I drink tea.”

In a future context, Swedish generally uses the present tense in the time clause even when English also commonly uses a present form:

• Jag ringer när jag kommer fram. — “I’ll call when I arrive.”

The main clause can make the future meaning clear with ska, kommer att, or context. Do not normally put ska in the time clause merely to mark futurity. It is possible there when ska has its own modal meaning, such as intention or obligation.

Medan: overlapping events

Use medan when two actions or states continue at the same time:

• Hon läste medan barnen sov. — “She read while the children were sleeping.”

It can also contrast two facts, much like English “whereas”: Jag föredrar kaffe, medan min bror dricker te. This contrastive use is not mainly temporal, but it is common in both speech and writing.

Innan and före: two kinds of “before”

Use innan before a clause with a subject and verb:

• innan du går — “before you leave”
• innan filmen börjar — “before the film starts”

Use före most safely before a noun or noun phrase:

• före mötet — “before the meeting”
• före klockan åtta — “before eight o’clock”

In everyday Swedish, innan is also very common before time expressions and nouns: innan lunch, innan klockan åtta. Före remains useful, especially when comparing order or position: A kommer före B. For a finite clause, choose innan, not före: innan vi börjar.

Efter att and efter: “after”

Use efter att before a clause:

• efter att vi hade ätit — “after we had eaten”

Use efter before a noun:

• efter middagen — “after dinner”

The word att belongs to the conjunction efter att here. It is not the infinitive marker found in att läsa (“to read”). In informal Swedish, efter vi hade ätit can be heard, but efter att is the standard choice before a full clause and is safest in careful writing.

Sedan: “since” from a starting point

As a conjunction, sedan introduces the event from which a later state is measured:

• Sedan jag flyttade har jag lärt känna många människor. — “Since I moved, I’ve got to know many people.”

The continuing result is often expressed with the present tense or present perfect in the main clause, depending on meaning. Swedish does not mechanically copy the English tense:

• Jag bor här sedan jag började universitetet. — “I’ve lived here since I started university.”
• Jag har mått bättre sedan jag bytte jobb. — “I’ve felt better since I changed jobs.”

Sedan has other roles too. It can be an adverb meaning “then/afterwards” (Sedan gick vi hem) and appears in sedan dess (“since then”). Only conjunctional sedan introduces a clause directly.

Tills: the endpoint

Use tills when an action or state continues up to a limit:

• Vi väntar tills bussen kommer. — “We’ll wait until the bus comes.”
• Butiken är öppen tills klockan nio. — “The shop is open until nine.”

Unlike most items in this article, tills can be followed either by a clause or directly by a time expression. Future meaning again normally uses the present tense: tills du kommer, not tills du ska komma when you simply mean “until you arrive.”

Examples in Context

Swedish	English	Note
När jag kom hem, ringde telefonen.	When I came home, the phone rang.	Initial time clause causes inversion: ringde telefonen.
När jag inte arbetar brukar jag promenera.	When I’m not working, I usually go for a walk.	Inte comes before arbetar in the subordinate clause.
Ring mig när du är klar.	Call me when you’re ready.	The time clause follows the main clause.
Medan vi väntade, började det regna.	While we waited, it started to rain.	Two events overlap.
Jag lyssnar på en podd medan jag lagar middag.	I listen to a podcast while I make dinner.	Two ongoing activities.
Innan du går, bör du äta.	Before you leave, you should eat.	Innan is followed by a full clause.
Vi träffas före lektionen.	We’ll meet before the lesson.	Före is followed by a noun.
Efter att mötet slutade gick vi hem.	After the meeting ended, we went home.	Efter att introduces a clause; the main clause is inverted.
Efter filmen tog vi bussen hem.	After the film, we took the bus home.	Efter is followed by a noun.
Sedan jag flyttade, har jag nya vänner.	Since I moved, I have new friends.	Starting point in the past; the result is true now.
Jag har sovit bättre sedan jag köpte en ny säng.	I’ve slept better since I bought a new bed.	Present perfect describes the period since the change.
Vi stannar här tills regnet slutar.	We’ll stay here until the rain stops.	Tills marks the endpoint.
Vänta tills jag har pratat klart.	Wait until I’ve finished speaking.	Perfect tense presents the first action as completed.
Medan Sara arbetar hemma, åker Leo till kontoret.	While Sara works from home, Leo goes to the office.	Temporal overlap with a mild contrast.

Common Mistakes

Keeping main-clause word order after inte

• Wrong: Jag väntar tills bussen kommer inte.
• Right: Jag väntar tills bussen inte kommer längre.
• Why: In a subordinate clause, inte normally comes before the finite verb: inte kommer. The added längre makes the intended meaning (“no longer comes”) natural.

Forgetting inversion after an initial time clause

• Wrong: När filmen slutade, vi gick hem.
• Right: När filmen slutade gick vi hem.
• Why: The initial subordinate clause takes the first position. The main-clause verb gick must therefore come before the subject vi.

Using före before a finite clause

• Wrong: Före vi börjar vill jag fråga en sak.
• Right: Innan vi börjar vill jag fråga en sak.
• Why: Standard Swedish uses innan before a subject plus finite verb. Use före before a noun: före mötet.

Leaving out att after efter

• Less suitable in careful writing: Efter vi hade ätit gick vi ut.
• Standard: Efter att vi hade ätit gick vi ut.
• Why: Before a full clause, the standard conjunction is efter att. Use plain efter before a noun: efter maten.

Adding future ska automatically

• Unnatural for simple futurity: Jag ringer när jag ska komma fram.
• Right: Jag ringer när jag kommer fram.
• Why: Swedish generally uses the present tense in future time clauses. Ska is retained only when it contributes intention, arrangement, or obligation: Säg till när du ska åka can mean “Tell me when you are due/intend to leave.”

Confusing sedan and tills

• Wrong: Jag väntar sedan du kommer.
• Right: Jag väntar tills du kommer.
• Why: Tills points forward to an endpoint. Sedan looks back to a starting point: Jag har väntat sedan klockan två.

Usage Notes

Swedish punctuation is lighter than traditional English punctuation. A comma is not automatically required between a subordinate clause and a main clause. När jag kom hem ringde telefonen is fully standard. A comma can still help readers process a long introductory clause, but punctuation does not change the inversion rule.

English “when” can introduce either a statement or an indirect question. Swedish distinguishes these meanings. Use när for time: Jag ringer när hon kommer (“I’ll call when she arrives”). In an indirect question, när still means “when,” but the whole clause answers an unknown-time question: Jag vet inte när hon kommer (“I don’t know when she is coming”). Both are subordinate clauses and use subordinate-clause word order.

Be alert to medan as “whereas.” In Anna vill bo i stan, medan Erik föredrar landet, the point is contrast rather than literal simultaneity. This use is particularly common in explanatory and formal writing, though it is not restricted to formal language.

The form sen is a very common spoken and informal written shortening of adverbial sedan: Sen gick vi hem (“Then we went home”). In the conjunction meaning “since,” both sedan and colloquial sen occur, but sedan is the neutral choice in formal prose: sedan jag flyttade.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Completion before another event

When you want to emphasize that one action is already complete before another, Swedish can use the perfect infinitive-like tense combinations within the time clause: the present perfect for a future reference point and the past perfect for a past one.

• När du har läst rapporten kan vi diskutera den. — “When you have read the report, we can discuss it.”
• Efter att hon hade skickat mejlet upptäckte hon felet. — “After she had sent the email, she noticed the error.”

The simple past is also often enough when the sequence is obvious: Efter att hon skickade mejlet gick hon på lunch. The past perfect hade skickat highlights completion or helps clarify the order in a more complex narrative.

Innan with a negative idea

English speakers sometimes expect “until” whenever a negative is involved, but Swedish may choose innan when the focus is on something happening before an unwanted result:

• Skynda dig innan butiken stänger! — “Hurry before the shop closes!”
• Ta en kopia innan du raderar filen. — “Make a copy before you delete the file.”

With tills, the first situation continues to the endpoint: Vänta tills butiken stänger means “Wait until the shop closes.” Choosing between the two therefore changes the relationship, not merely the conjunction.

Då and när

You may encounter då meaning “when” in narratives, especially when referring back to a specific past situation: Då jag bodde i Lund cyklade jag överallt. In contemporary neutral Swedish, när is usually the safest conjunction: När jag bodde i Lund …. Då is also extremely common as the main-clause adverb “then”: När jag bodde i Lund, då cyklade jag överallt. The repeated när … då structure can add emphasis and is common in speech.

Reduced alternatives

Swedish often replaces a full time clause with a preposition plus noun or with a compact written construction:

• efter mötet instead of efter att mötet var slut
• före avresan instead of innan vi reste
• vid ankomsten (“on arrival”) in formal instructions

These alternatives are concise, but full clauses usually sound clearer and more conversational when it matters who performs the action.

Practice Tips

1. Build clause pairs. Take one event pair, such as jag kommer hem and jag lagar mat, and connect it in both orders: Jag lagar mat när jag kommer hem and När jag kommer hem lagar jag mat. Check the inversion in the second version.
2. Add inte as a word-order test. Change när jag arbetar to när jag inte arbetar. This makes subordinate-clause order visible and turns BIFF into a habit rather than a memorized slogan.
3. Draw a simple timeline. Mark a starting point for sedan, an endpoint for tills, overlap for medan, and event order for innan and efter att. Then write one sentence for each relationship using events from your own week.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Subordinate Clauses — review subordinate-clause word order and the position of inte before combining clauses with time conjunctions.