Prepositions of time: klockan (at), på (on/in), i (for duration), om (in future)
Can use klockan for clock time, på for weekdays, i for months and duration, and om for a point ahead.
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Vi träffas klockan tre på fredag.
We're meeting at three o'clock on Friday.
I januari är det mörkt redan klockan fyra.
In January it is dark as early as four o'clock.
Bussen går om tio minuter.
The bus leaves in ten minutes.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
English speakers usually expect Swedish time expressions to be a simple swap of "at, on, in". They are not, and one small Swedish system catches everyone: a change of preposition or an ending on the noun tells you whether you mean the past, the future or a habit.
| Swedish | Used for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| klockan (kl.) | clock time | klockan tre - at three o'clock |
| på | days, parts of the day | på fredag - on Friday; på morgonen - in the morning |
| i | months, seasons, festivals; duration | i januari, i jul (this Christmas), i två timmar (for two hours) |
| om | "in" from now | om tio minuter - in ten minutes |
| för ... sedan | ago | för tre år sedan - three years ago |
| Swedish | English |
|---|---|
| på måndag | on (this coming) Monday |
| i måndags | last Monday |
| på måndagar | on Mondays, every Monday |
| i sommar | this summer (coming) |
| i somras | last summer |
| i kväll / i morse | this evening / this morning (earlier today) |
The -s forms (i måndags, i somras, i julas) point back to the most recent one. Learners who say på måndag about something that already happened confuse everyone.
Jag har bott här i två år. - I have lived here for two years. Jag läste boken på två dagar. - I read the book in two days (it took two days). And om två dagar is "two days from now". Three prepositions where English has "for" and "in".
Dates: den sjätte juni (Sweden's national day), på midsommarafton. Times in writing often use the 24-hour clock: Tåget går kl. 14.25. In speech Swedes use the 12-hour clock with på morgonen, på eftermiddagen, på kvällen. I januari är det mörkt redan klockan fyra. - In January it's dark by four o'clock.
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises
Practice Exercises'På' for days and day parts. 'I' for months and duration. 'Om' for future time spans.
Using one preposition for every kind of time expression
klockan for clock time, pa for days of the week, i for months and duration, om for a point ahead (om en timme). Do not confuse om tio minuter (in ten minutes) with i tio minuter (for ten minutes).
Vi träffas klockan tre på fredag.
We're meeting at three o'clock on Friday.
klockan for clock time, på for days of the week.
I januari är det mörkt redan klockan fyra.
In January it is dark as early as four o'clock.
i is used for months and for a stretch of time: i januari, i två timmar.
Bussen går om tio minuter.
The bus leaves in ten minutes.
om means 'in' pointing forward. Do not confuse it with i tio minuter, which means 'for ten minutes'.
The check for this topic is still being prepared
Ready-made hints are free
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises