English - Swedish translation

English to Swedish: clarify ownership before choosing the small words

Whose keys did she take?

English her can describe the subject’s possession or another woman’s possession. Swedish often distinguishes these through sin, sitt, and sina versus hennes. “She took her keys” can be “Hon tog sina nycklar” if the keys belong to the woman taking them. If they belong to another woman, hennes changes the ownership. A fluent-looking translation can therefore assert something the English sentence leaves undecided.

The form of the reflexive possessive follows the possessed noun, not the owner’s gender. A plural possession needs a plural form. In a message about returning documents or collecting belongings, name the owner if the English source does not establish the relationship. Do not select a reflexive form merely because she and her occur close together.

Tomorrow changes the subject’s position

Swedish main statements normally put the finite verb in the second constituent position. “Tomorrow we will send the parcel” can be “I morgon skickar vi paketet.” The time phrase occupies the opening position and vi follows skickar. The English sequence “tomorrow we send” cannot simply be copied into Swedish.

The present is useful for a planned future when the time expression supplies that meaning. English will can also express willingness or prediction, so it does not prescribe one Swedish auxiliary. Decide whether the writer announces an arrangement, promises an action, or guesses what will happen. Preserve that level of commitment in a customer-service message.

Negation moves inside a subordinate clause

An English negative often requires do not, but Swedish does not need an equivalent do auxiliary. “I know that he cannot come” becomes “Jag vet att han inte kan komma.” In this subordinate clause, inte precedes the finite kan. In an ordinary main statement, the corresponding negation follows the finite verb. Checking the clause boundary prevents an English-shaped sentence that places all its words in the wrong slots.

Focus matters too. A negative about coming today is different from a negative about being able to come at all. Preserve time words and alternatives that show what the writer is rejecting. A short source such as “not today” should not become a permanent refusal.

Avoid creating formality through an automatic plural

Contemporary Swedish commonly uses du for an individual and ni for several people. Ni also has singular address uses, but it is not a universal politeness upgrade to attach to every unfamiliar customer. Use the relationship established by the exchange rather than importing a rigid English formal/informal distinction.

Finally, preserve å, ä, and ö in names and ordinary words. They are letters, not decorative accents. Copy an official personal or company name accurately and avoid substituting a visually similar English spelling when the recipient needs to recognize or search for it.