Swedish for Expats · Lesson 4 of 10
Days of the Week & Telling Time in Swedish
Book a meeting, catch the right bus, plan your week — all in Swedish.
Expat in Sweden · 10 min read
📚 Swedish for Expats — Course Progress
Lesson 4 of 10 · Halfway there — great work!
👋 From my experience: Swedish work culture runs on punctuality and clear scheduling. When a colleague says "Vi ses på tisdag klockan tre" (See you Tuesday at three), you need to understand every word. This lesson is essential for workplace life in Sweden.
Time to complete: 10–15 minutes · Words learned: 7 days + time phrases
Days of the Week
Swedish weeks start on Monday (måndag). Each day name has a fascinating origin — mostly from Norse gods.
Day 1
Måndag
Monday
From Måne — the Moon
Day 2
Tisdag
Tuesday
From Tyr — Norse god of war
Day 3
Onsdag
Wednesday
From Oden — chief Norse god
Day 4
Torsdag
Thursday
From Tor — god of thunder
Day 5
Fredag
Friday
From Freja — goddess of love
Day 6
Lördag
Saturday
From Laugardagr — bath day!
Day 7
Söndag
Sunday
From Sol — the Sun
💡 Memory trick: Thursday = Torsdag = Thor's day. Once you know that, the pattern clicks for all the god-named days. And Lördag literally meant "bathing day" in Old Norse — Swedes historically bathed on Saturdays!
Telling Time — Vad är klockan?
The most common way to ask for the time. Klockan means "the clock" but is used to express time.
| Swedish | English | Example |
|---|
| Vad är klockan? | What time is it? | — |
| Klockan är tre. | It is three o'clock. | 15:00 |
| Halv fyra | Half past three | 03:30 (literally "half four") |
| Kvart över två | Quarter past two | 02:15 |
| Kvart i fem | Quarter to five | 04:45 |
| På morgonen | In the morning | AM |
| På eftermiddagen | In the afternoon | PM |
| På kvällen | In the evening | Evening |
💡 Watch out: Halv fyra means half past THREE — not half past four! Swedish counts "half toward the next hour." This trips up almost every expat. If someone says halv åtta for a meeting, they mean 07:30, not 08:30.
Useful Time & Schedule Phrases
| Swedish | English |
|---|
| Idag | Today |
| Imorgon | Tomorrow |
| Igår | Yesterday |
| Den här veckan | This week |
| Nästa vecka | Next week |
| Vi ses på måndag. | See you on Monday. |
| Mötet är klockan tio. | The meeting is at ten o'clock. |
| Är du ledig på fredag? | Are you free on Friday? |
✏️ Quick Practice
1. How do you say Wednesday in Swedish?
Your answer...Onsdag
2. What does "halv sju" mean?
Your answer...Half past SIX (06:30) — not half past seven!
3. How do you ask "Are you free on Friday?"
Your answer...Är du ledig på fredag?
4. How do you say "See you tomorrow"?
Your answer...Vi ses imorgon.
Your Challenge This Week
🎯 Try this: Change your phone's language to Swedish for one week. Every notification, every calendar entry, every day label — in Swedish. It sounds scary but it is the fastest way to absorb the days and time naturally. You can always switch back.
Coming Up — Lesson 5: At the Shop
- How much does it cost? — Vad kostar det?
- I would like… — Jag skulle vilja ha…
- Do you have…? — Har ni…?
- Paying and getting change
Go to Lesson 5 →