How to Learn Swedish From English
- 1). Familiarize yourself with the three letters in the Swedish alphabet not found in the English alphabet, specifically å, ä and ö. ... makes a sound similar to "oh-awe" said quickly, while ä is similar to the "e" in egg, and ö sounds like the first part of the word earn if you stop before the "r."
- 2). Listen to an audio tape or CD-ROM to hear the pronunciation of the rest of the letters in the Swedish alphabet. Except å, ä and ö, the rest of the Swedish alphabet is identical to English, but some of the letters are pronounced differently, in particular the vowels.
- 3). Learn a few basic Swedish vocabulary words using a beginner-level guide to travelers' Swedish or an online site for learning Swedish. Knowing a few nouns and verbs will make it easier to start building sentences when you move on to grammar. You should also learn a few common prepositions and some adjectives. When you learn nouns, try to memorize whether the nouns use "ett" or "en" as the demonstrative adjective, or equivalent to "the." No hard and fast rules exist for knowing whether a noun will use "en" or "ett," so it's easiest in the beginning to simply memorize this as a part of learning the noun.
- 4). Read a Swedish grammar manual after you have learned 100 to 200 vocabulary words. You will want learn the rules for verb placement and sentence building. This will help you start constructing sentences in Swedish, either in spoken speech or in writing.
- 5). Continue building your vocabulary by starting to read Swedish texts, while keeping a Swedish-English dictionary nearby to look up unfamiliar words. Make notes of the words in a notebook and try to use each new word in a sentence. Consider making flashcards or using a flashcard application to practice the words and solidify them in your memory.
- 6). Practice speaking with another person learning Swedish, or even better, with a native speaker who is interested in helping you and willing to give you tips on pronunciation and grammar. Swedish children are required to learn English during elementary school, and many Swedish adults are interested in improving or maintaining their English skills. You may be able to find a pen pal or chat buddy willing to critique your Swedish in exchange for your critiquing his or her English.
- 7). Increase the difficulty level of the texts you are reading as your confidence level improves. When you feel that you're able to understand the texts in an average beginners' Swedish guide, try reading a Swedish newspaper such as "Dagens Industri" or "Svenska Dagbladet," both of which have online editions, while keeping your Swedish-English dictionary nearby. This will help to improve your comprehension and vocabulary.