the V2 rule

 Swedish word-order can be a bit of a headache. Before you start thinking about main and sub-clauses (and the infamous BIFF Rule), it’s important to get your head about the V2 rule, the most basic rule of Swedish syntax which controls where the verb goes in a sentence.

What is the V2 Rule? 

The "V2" rule isn’t actually particularly Swedish. It’s a feature of most Germanic languages and you’ll come across it in the other Scandinavian languages (Norwegian, Danish, Icelandic, Faroese) as well as in German, Yiddish, Dutch & Afrikaans. It refers to the positioning of the first finite verb in a sentence. A finite verb is just a fancy way of saying any verb that isn't its dictionary entry form (aka an infinitive).

Infinitive verb: att köra - to drive

finite verb examples: kör - drive(s); körde - drove

The V2 rules dictates that the first finite verb must always be in the second position. This doesn't necessarily mean the second word — we'll see later that the first position in a sentence can contain multiple words or even entire clauses.

Basic Sentence Structure

In a straightforward declarative sentence, the structure follows the Subject-Verb-Object (SVO) pattern, which aligns with the V2 rule naturally in both Swedish and English:

Hon läser en bok

She reads a book

  Here, "Hon" (she) is the subject, "läser" (reads) is the verb, and "en bok" (a book) is the object.

 In English, there are still some examples where V2 word-order is allowed in other types of sentences. These usually have an emphatic or slightly poetic feeling, such as in the examples below:

•So do I

•Never in my life have I been so offended

•High on the clifftop stands a beautiful red house

Here we have some intuition as English-speakers that “so I do” sounds a bit weird and also that the words [never have I ever] somehow go together as a unit.

Moving Sentence Elements

The complexity and flexibility of Swedish sentence structure become apparent when other elements of the sentence are moved to the beginning. Remember, regardless of which element starts the sentence, the verb MUST remain in the second position. 

Starting with an Adverbial

When an adverbial phrase (typically something to do with time or place) begins the sentence, the subject follows the verb.

Imorgon läser hon en bok.

Tomorrow she will read a book

 "Imorgon" (tomorrow) is an adverbial phrase that starts the sentence, moving the subject "hon" (she) after the verb "läser" (reads).

These adverbial phrases aren’t restricted to single words like “Imorgon” — instead they can consists of entire phrases:

Efter en lång dag på jobbet, läser hon en bok.

After a long dat at work, she reads a book.

Starting with an object

If the object is moved to the beginning of the sentence, the verb still occupies the second position, pushing the subject to follow the verb.

En bok läser hon.

  A book she reads.

 Here, "En bok" (a book) starts the sentence, followed by the verb "läser" (reads) and then the subject "hon" (she).

Fundament

Your Swedish textbook probably makes reference to the "fundament". This is really just a fancy term for anything to the left of the first verb.  

Take a look at the following sentences and work out which words or group of words would be the fundament, i.e. occupy the first position in a sentence before the verb.

  1.  Jag äter alltid frukost innan jag lämnar huset.

  2. Varför har du inte stängt av datorn?

  3. Ibland läser hon en bok i sängen.

  4. Vi lyssnar alltid på musik när vi är på semester.

  5. Om du vill kan vi ta en promenad i parken ikväll.

  6. Frukt köper de aldrig från ICA.

  7. En sådan hund vill jag inte ha.

  8. Efter skolan leker barnen i parken.

  9. På tavlan finns all information.

  10. Henne har jag aldrig set.

  • The fundament in each sentence has been underlined

    1.            Jag äter alltid frukost innan jag lämnar huset.

    2.             Varför har du inte stängt av datorn?

    3.             Ibland läser hon en bok i sängen.

    4.             Vi lyssnar alltid på musik när vi är på semester.

    5.             Om du vill kan vi ta en promenad i parken ikväll.

    6.             Frukt köper de aldrig från ICA.

    7.             En sådan hund vill jag inte ha.

    8.             Efter skolan leker barnen i parken.

    9.             På tavlan finns all information.

    10.          Henne har jag aldrig sett

Yes/No Questions

These are slightly different as they don't have a fundament (not such a fundamental part of a sentence after all…).

In yes/no questions, the verb is in the first position, with the subject immediately following.

Läser hon en bok?

Does she read a book?

 Embedded Clauses

The V2 rule also applies in cases where the fundament is a sub-clause. Here, once again, we see that the finite verb occupies the second position in the sentence.

Eftersom det regnar så mycket, vill vi stanna hemma idag.

Because it’s raining so much, we want to stay home today.

To sum up…

The V2 syntax rule is a cornerstone of Swedish grammar, ensuring that the verb takes the second position in main clauses. This rule holds true whether the sentence starts with the subject, an adverbial phrase, or an object.