Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Jasmine: Tjena, hello there. This is Jasmine.
Morten: Hej, allihopa. Morten here and welcome to SwedishPod101.com, Absolute Beginner Season 1, Lesson 7 - How Are You in Sweden?
Jasmine: In this lesson, we will look at ways to ask how people are.
Morten: We also have a very helpful piece of vocab for you.
Jasmine: Yes. It will prove immensely useful.
Morten: The conversation is triggered by a chance meeting at the university cafeteria in Gothenburg. Once again our speakers are James and Anders.
Jasmine: Anders bumps into James on his way back to work at the IO.
Morten: The conversation has very little formality, but Anders is in a bit of a rush, so he has to get back to work.
Jasmine: Let's listen to the conversation.

Lesson conversation

Anders: Hej James, hur står det till?
James: Bra, tack. Och själv då?
Anders: Jo, läget är också bra. Hur är det med Ewa och Nils i lägenheten?
James: Allt går mycket väl och de mår också bra. Ewa pratar allt mer svenska och Nils är jättetrevlig.
Anders: Du James, tyvärr måste jag tillbaka till jobbet nu. Jag ber om ursäkt. Vi ses väl snart?
James: Javisst, tack. Hej och ha det så bra!
Morten: And now the slow version.
Jasmine: Och nu den sakta versionen.
Anders: Hej James, hur står det till?
James: Bra, tack. Och själv då?
Anders: Jo, läget är också bra. Hur är det med Ewa och Nils i lägenheten?
James: Allt går mycket väl och de mår också bra. Ewa pratar allt mer svenska och Nils är jättetrevlig.
Anders: Du James, tyvärr måste jag tillbaka till jobbet nu. Jag ber om ursäkt. Vi ses väl snart?
James: Javisst, tack. Hej och ha det så bra!
Morten: And now the English translation.
Jasmine: Och nu med den engelska översättningen.
Anders: Hej James, hur står det till?
Morten: Hi, James, how are you?
James: Bra, tack. Och själv då?
Morten: Fine, thanks. And you?
Anders: Jo, läget är också bra. Hur är det med Ewa och Nils i lägenheten?
Morten: Sure, all sound, too. How are things with Ewa and Nils in the flat?
James: Allt går mycket väl och de mår också bra. Ewa pratar allt mer svenska och Nils är jättetrevlig.
Morten: Everything's working out really well, and they're also good. Ewa speaks more and more Swedish, and Nils is really pleasant.
Anders: Du James, tyvärr måste jag tillbaka till jobbet nu. Jag ber om ursäkt. Vi ses väl snart?
Morten: James, I'm afraid I have to get back to work now. I apologize. I'll see you soon, won't I?
James: Javisst, tack. Hej och ha det så bra!
Morten: Yes, sure. Thanks. Bye and take care!
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Morten: Anders and James are bumping into each other at the university cafeteria.
Jasmine: Yeah, that's right. Swedish universities all have some cafeterias that cater to students and staff.
Morten: Do they also have big dining halls or refectories with really cheap food?
Jasmine: Not always. Some do, but cafeterias are common. There are also rooms with microwaves.
Morten: So students can bring in their own food and you can eat it in the cafeteria. Splendid.
Jasmine: And if neither of these options is for you, there will also be plenty of restaurants and cafes around that offer student discounts.
Morten: So, it's a good idea to explore the area around your university.
Jasmine: And ask your friends for recommendations.
Morten: To get the student discount, you will need your student ID, right?
Jasmine: Definitely. Your studentleg is something you should always carry.
Morten: Studentleg means student ID. You can get discounts at other places too with it, can't you?
Jasmine: You can indeed. Museums, theaters, clubs and sports stadiums all offer student discounts.
Morten: So you should definitely be taking advantage of your student ID.
Jasmine: Of course. It's good to carry some other form of ID as well.
Morten: Why is that?
Jasmine: If you are one of those fortunate people who look a lot younger than they are.
Morten: Oh, you're talking about buying alcohol, right?
Jasmine: Yes, the drinking age in Sweden is 20.
Morten: So if you don't have your ID on you, you may not be served alcohol?
Jasmine: You may not even get into the pub or a club.
Morten: So always bring your ID.
Jasmine: Yes. leg is short for legitimation as we call ID is essential.
Morten: So don't forget it. Let's take a look at this lesson's vocabulary.
VOCAB LIST
First we have.
Jasmine: Läget [natural native speed]
Morten: The situation (how things are).
Jasmine: Läget [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Läget [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have.
Jasmine: Hur står det till? [natural native speed]
Morten: How are you?
Jasmine: Hur står det till? [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Hur står det till? [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have.
Jasmine: Bra, tack [natural native speed]
Morten: Fine, thanks.
Jasmine: Bra, tack [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Bra, tack [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have.
Jasmine: Och själv då? [natural native speed]
Morten: And you?
Jasmine: Och själv då? [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Och själv då? [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have.
Jasmine: Hur är det? [natural native speed]
Morten: How are things?
Jasmine: Hur är det? [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Hur är det? [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have
Jasmine: Jag ber om ursäkt. [natural native speed]
Morten: I apologize.
Jasmine: Jag ber om ursäkt. [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Jag ber om ursäkt. [natural native speed]
Morten: Next, we have.
Jasmine: Ha det så bra. [natural native speed]
Morten: Take care. (lit. "have it/be so good")
Jasmine: Ha det så bra. [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Ha det så bra. [natural native speed]
Morten: And finally, we have.
Jasmine: Tyvärr [natural native speed]
Morten: Unfortunately.
Jasmine: Tyvärr [slowly - broken down by syllable]. Tyvärr [natural native speed]
KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES
Morten: Let's take a closer look at the words and phrases in this lesson. We have a big six phrases in our focus for this lesson. So let's get cracking.
Jasmine: That's right. There maybe a lot, but these are great for everyday use.
Morten: Okay. So first, upon meeting someone, you'll probably ask?
Jasmine: Hur står det till?
Morten: How are you? And is there another way to ask that?
Jasmine: Of course, Hur är det?
Morten: How are things? Are these equally formal?
Jasmine: Almost, but the first one is a bit more formal.
Morten: Okay. Let's hear them again so our listeners can repeat.
Jasmine: Hur står det till?
Morten: Hur står det till?, how are you? The pronunciation here is a bit odd, isn't it?
Jasmine: Yes, R and S in Swedish even when occurring in two separate words usually sound like "sh."
Morten: And when they're in the same word, they always do?
Jasmine: Yes if they're spread across two words, as in this phrase the "sh" pronunciation is likely.
Morten: But not guaranteed, right?
Jasmine: Right. But most native speakers will pronounce these letters "sh" even when they are split across words.
Morten: I see. What about the other question we just covered?
Jasmine: Hur är det?
Morten: Hur är det?, how are things? And the response usually is?
Jasmine: Bra, tack. Fine, thanks.
Morten: But you might want to add something after it.
Jasmine: Yeah. Very often you'll hear, bra, tack. Och själv då?
Morten: Fine thanks. And how about you? Let's here that again so our listeners can repeat it.
Jasmine: Bra, tack. Och själv då?
Morten: Bra, tack. Och själv då? Excellent.
Jasmine: All of these are set phrases.
Morten: So you're asking how people are, but you don't really want to know.
Jasmine: Yes and no. Yes because that is increasingly the case. No because there is nothing wrong with answering honestly.
Morten: I see. Good to know.
Jasmine: Yes. These phrases aren't void of meaning yet.
Morten: As they often are in English.
Jasmine: But there is a tendency towards that.
Morten: We will cover one such example in our lesson focus.
Jasmine: The next phrase is something you say when you truly want to apologize for something.
Morten: Jag ber om ursäkt.
Jasmine: I apologize. You can use this when you have to leave suddenly the way Anders did in the dialogue.
Morten: Or when you've done something that really calls for an apology.
Jasmine: Correct. Please listen and repeat after me, Jag ber om ursäkt.
Morten: Jag ber om ursäkt
Jasmine: And our last phrase in this lesson is the useful thing to say when you're leaving.
Morten: Yes. If you want to say a little more than just hejdå.
Jasmine: You normally use this phrase with people you know fairly well, like your friends, ha det så bra.
Morten: It means something like take care doesn't it?
Jasmine: Yes. It literally means be good. Please listen and repeat, ha det så bra.
Morten: Ha det så bra. Thank you very much.

Lesson focus

Now, let's take a look at this lesson's grammar section. In this lesson focus, we'll look more closely at the ways of asking people how they are.
Jasmine: And we'll also take a look at an extremely useful word that can be used in many other context.
Morten: In the vocab section, we already covered some of the ways to ask people how they are.
Jasmine: Let's recap. What were they again?
Morten: Hur står det till? which is a little more formal than?
Jasmine: Hur är det? If you want to be a little more formal, you say?
Morten: Hur står det till? to be slightly less formal, you say?
Jasmine: Hur är det? Well done.
Morten: That last phrase sometimes combines with something else.
Jasmine: As in our dialogue, you can say Hur är det med dig?
Morten: How are things with you? You can also ask about someone in particular.
Jasmine: Hur är det med Anders? how are things with Anders?
Morten: Got it? If you want to make the question a little more personal, it becomes?
Jasmine: Hur är det med dig? That's right.
Morten: But there is another word hidden in the dialogue that could be used for the same purpose, right.
Jasmine: That's correct. In a very casual context usually among friends, you can also say Läget?
Morten: Which translates into something like all right or what's up? That sounds pretty casual.
Jasmine: It is. It's a very street way to ask how are you.
Morten: Of course, since we are broadcasting it in this lesson, it may not be so street anymore.
Jasmine: True. Once street talk enters the mainstream, it's no longer street.
Morten: But we can use it anyway. So if you see a good Swedish friend on the street, you can say?
Jasmine: Läget? very good.
Morten: How can I respond to Läget?
Jasmine: Well, you could use the old stand by bra tack. But you can also just say Läget right back.
Morten: Wow, that's a lot like English, sup, sup.
Jasmine: Ja, just det. It's just like that.
Morten: Do you recommend using this word?
Jasmine: Stick with the other options for now. If you get to know people really well and they start using it with you…
Morten: …you'll know when and how to use it yourself. That's what you mean, right?
Jasmine: Correct.
Morten: Now, let's move on to the very versatile little word själv.
Jasmine: Yes. själv, it means self, but it's such a useful word in Swedish.
Morten: In the dialogue, we use it in Och själv då.
Jasmine: That's right. You can use it to balance a question back at the person who asked it.
Morten: But it can be used more widely, can't it?
Jasmine: Even if the other person hasn't asked or anything but you want him to talk about himself, you can simply say?
Morten: Själv?
Jasmine: Yes or Själv då and that signals to your partner that you would like for him to say something.
Morten: Anything else to say about this word?
Jasmine: Only that it's very casual. So if you want to be on the safe side, you'll use?
Morten: Och själv då? but if you're more intimate with the person, you'll say?
Jasmine: Själv? That's right.
Morten: If someone comes up to you and ask you how you are…
Jasmine: …you say you're fine and then you add…
Morten: Och själv då? or if you know that person really well…
Jasmine: Själv?
Morten: This little word is a very useful one to master.
Jasmine: But we need to keep in mind how formal the situation is.
Morten: Thanks, Jasmine. Thanks a lot. Well that's it for this lesson. Attention perfectionists, you're about to learn how to perfect your pronunciation.
Jasmine: Listen, review audio tracks.
Morten: Increase fluency and vocabulary fast with these short, effective audio tracks.
Jasmine: Super simple to use. Listen to the Swedish word or phrase…
Morten: …then repeat it out loud in a loud clear voice.
Jasmine: You'll speak with confidence knowing that you're speaking Swedish like the locals.
Morten: Go to SwedishPod101.com and download the review audio tracks right on the lesson's page today. Tack så mycket, och hejdå.
Jasmine: Tack Själv.

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