How to Keep a Conversation Going in Swedish

Most Swedish small talk runs on a safe topic, such as the weekend, the weather or the summer, and a follow-up question about what the other person just said.

Openers people actually use

In Sweden, small talk mostly happens with people you have some connection to: colleagues, classmates, neighbours, friends of friends. Striking up a chat with a stranger on the bus is less common, so don't take it personally if that doesn't take off. At work, at a party or in the stairwell, these openers are safe:

The weather, the weekend and holidays are reliable topics. At a workplace fika, talk tends to stay light; our guide to what fika is explains the setting.

Questions that keep it going

The easiest way to keep a conversation going is to ask about what the other person just said. A short follow-up shows you're listening and gives them a reason to keep talking. When a topic runs dry, a new open question starts the next one:

Och du då? is especially useful: after answering a question, hand it straight back. Vad tycker du? does the same when you've said what you can and want to pass the turn. If question words still feel shaky, see Swedish question words.

Showing you're listening

Swedes signal attention with short sounds and words while the other person talks:

You may also hear ja or jo said on an in-breath, a short gasp-like "yes". It's a normal way of agreeing, heard especially in the north of Sweden, not a sign of surprise. På riktigt? is the everyday "Really?"; verkligen? sounds a bit more emphatic.

Little words you'll hear everywhere: alltså, liksom, ju, väl

These little words are everywhere in spoken Swedish. They're hard to translate, but you'll understand much more once you recognise them. Alltså and liksom mostly fill gaps, but ju and väl are not empty: they change what the sentence means.

• alltså: "well", "I mean", "so". Buys time or introduces a point. Alltså, jag vet inte riktigt. ("Well, I don't really know.") In casual speech it often sounds like asså.
• liksom: "like", "sort of". Softens or fills a gap. Det var liksom lite konstigt. ("It was sort of a bit weird.")
• ju: "you know", "after all". Marks something both speakers know. Det är ju söndag i dag. ("It's Sunday today, after all.")
• väl: "I suppose", "surely", "…right?". Expresses an assumption and invites agreement. Du kommer väl i kväll? ("You're coming tonight, right?") Compare Du kommer i kväll (a plain statement) and Du kommer ju i kväll ("You're coming tonight, as we both know").

You'll also hear typ ("like", "kind of") a lot among younger speakers, as in Vi var typ tio personer ("There were about ten of us"). It's informal, so use it with friends rather than at a job interview.

Don't overdo these words at first. One well-placed ju or alltså sounds natural; one in every sentence sounds like an imitation.

Taking turns, and why silence is fine

Swedish conversations often have a steady rhythm: one person finishes, the other starts, so it's normal to wait until the other person has finished before you speak.

Pauses are part of this. A few seconds of silence while someone thinks is fine, and you don't need to rush to fill it. For a learner, that's good news: you have time to build your sentence. If you need a moment, say so:

If a word won't come or you lose the thread, the phrases for getting unstuck without dropping into English are in our guide on practising when Swedes switch to English.

Ending the conversation

The usual reply to Ha en bra helg! is Tack, detsamma! ("Thanks, you too!").

Practise before the real thing

Rehearsing helps. In the practice conversations you choose what to say at each step of an everyday situation, such as a fika at a café or your first day at work. For the basic phrases with audio, start with the Greetings & Basics word list and our guide to essential Swedish phrases.