Dialogue

Vocabulary (Review)

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Lesson Notes

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Alisha:Hi Everyone! This is Alisha, and welcome back to SwedishPod101.com! This is season 1, lesson 15 - Sending a Package from Sweden
Satsuki:Hej allihopa! I’m Satsuki.
Alisha:In this lesson we’ll continue to learn how to compare options.
Satsuki:This conversation takes place at the post office.
Alisha:It’s between Lisa and a post office clerk. They’ll be using formal Swedish since they don't know each other.
Satsuki:Let’s listen to the conversation!

Lesson conversation

Lisa Hej, jag vill skicka det här paketet till USA. Hur mycket kostar det?
Postbiträde Med båt, 200 kronor. Med flyg, 400 kronor.
Lisa Jaha, det är billigare att skicka paketet med båt.
Postbiträde Ja, men det tar mer än en månad.
Lisa Och med flyg?
Postbiträde Det tar mindre än en vecka.
Lisa Då vill jag skicka det med flyg, tack.
Alisha: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly.
Lisa Hej, jag vill skicka det här paketet till USA. Hur mycket kostar det?
Postbiträde Med båt, 200 kronor. Med flyg, 400 kronor.
Lisa Jaha, det är billigare att skicka paketet med båt.
Postbiträde Ja, men det tar mer än en månad.
Lisa Och med flyg?
Postbiträde Det tar mindre än en vecka.
Lisa Då vill jag skicka det med flyg, tack.
Alisha: Now let’s hear it with the English translation.
Lisa Hej, jag vill skicka det här paketet till USA. Hur mycket kostar det?
Hi, I would like to send this package to the US. How much does it cost?
Postbiträde Med båt, 200 kronor. Med flyg, 400 kronor.
By boat, 200 crowns. By air, 400 crowns.
Lisa Jaha, det är billigare att skicka paketet med båt.
I see, it’s cheaper to send the package by boat?
Postbiträde Ja, men det tar mer än en månad.
Yes, but it takes more than a month.
Lisa Och med flyg?
And by air?
Postbiträde Det tar mindre än en vecka.
It takes less than a week.
Lisa Då vill jag skicka det med flyg, tack.
Then I want to send it by air, please.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Alisha:I’m glad Lisa managed to send her package. Satsuki, what can you tell us about the post office system in Sweden?
Satsuki:Well, it used to be state-owned, but that changed in 1994 and it’s now only partially owned by the government.
Alisha:I see, and are there many post offices around?
Satsuki:Well actually, the post doesn’t have any offices of their own anymore, which might seem a bit weird for someone visiting Sweden. Instead, they use something called ‘postombud’, which can be in grocery stores or gas stations. From there, you can send or collect packages.
Alisha:That sounds a bit complicated, how would I know where to go?
Satsuki:There’s usually a ‘postombud’ in your local area. Your safest bet is probably to visit your local ICA, which is very common grocery store in Sweden.
Alisha:Do you need to go there if you just want to send a letter or a postcard?
Satsuki:No, for those kinds of errands, you usually just need to buy a stamp from a grocery store or kiosk. Mailboxes are usually not hard to find either.
Alisha:Okay, that sounds fairly simple. Now, let’s move on to the vocabulary!
VOCAB LIST
Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson.
The first word we shall see is:
att skicka [natural native speed]
to send
att skicka [slowly - broken down by syllable]
att skicka [natural native speed]
Next:
paketet [natural native speed]
the package
paketet [slowly - broken down by syllable]
paketet [natural native speed]
Next:
USA [natural native speed]
the US
USA [slowly - broken down by syllable]
USA [natural native speed]
Next:
båt [natural native speed]
boat
båt [slowly - broken down by syllable]
båt [natural native speed]
Next:
med flyg [natural native speed]
by air
med flyg [slowly - broken down by syllable]
med flyg [natural native speed]
Next:
billig [natural native speed]
cheap
billig [slowly - broken down by syllable]
billig [natural native speed]
Next:
att ta [natural native speed]
to take
att ta [slowly - broken down by syllable]
att ta [natural native speed]
Next:
mer än [natural native speed]
more than
mer än [slowly - broken down by syllable]
mer än [natural native speed]
Next:
månad [natural native speed]
month
månad [slowly - broken down by syllable]
månad [natural native speed]
Next:
mindre än [natural native speed]
less than
mindre än [slowly - broken down by syllable]
mindre än [natural native speed]
KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES
Let's have a closer look at the usuage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson.
Satsuki:Let’s start with how Swedes refer to the United States of America.
Alisha:And how is that?
Satsuki:They either use the abbreviation ‘USA’ or ‘Amerika’.
Alisha:Is either more common than the other?
Satsuki:I guess ‘USA’ is used more frequently than ‘Amerika’. But Swedes can be a bit careless when they pronounce ‘USA’ sometimes, and it ends up sounding like ‘UVSA’.
Alisha:Okay, that’s worth remembering! Let’s move on to the next expression, “by air”.
Satsuki:Which is ‘med flyg’. But keep in mind that the preposition ‘med’ literally translates to “with”. It’s used in front of the names for methods of transportation.
Alisha:So how would I say “Lisa went to school by bus”?
Satsuki:‘Lisa åkte till skolan med buss’. You can also use the preposition ‘med’ when you’re talking about someone doing something with somebody.
Alisha:Okay, how would you say “Lisa went with Anna to school”?
Satsuki:‘Lisa åkte med Anna till skolan’.
Alisha:Great! Let’s move on to the grammar now.

Lesson focus

Alisha:In this lesson, we’ll continue to learn how to compare different options.
Satsuki:You may remember that we learned how to use comparative adjectives in an earlier lesson.
Alisha:Yes, we learned how to say things like “the chicken salad is bigger than the tuna salad”.
Satsuki:Exactly, and that was ‘kycklingsalladen är större än kycklingsalladen’. But in this lesson, we’ll learn how to compare options, by using the sentence structure that appears in this lesson’s dialog.
Alisha:It’s the sentence where Lisa says “I see, it is cheaper to send the package by boat?”
Satsuki:In Swedish, ‘jaha, det är billigare att skicka paketet med båt’.
Alisha:And this type of sentence is quite different from the one we learned before.
Satsuki:Yes, that’s right. In this sentence, the options being compared with each other are described by verbs.
Alisha:Whereas in the sentence from the earlier lesson, “the chicken salad is bigger than the tuna salad”, we were comparing nouns.
Satsuki:That’s right. Also, in the sentence from this dialog, the option that “to send by boat” is being compared to is not explicitly expressed. That other option is “to send by air”.
Alisha:Why’s that?
Satsuki:Well, omitting the option that something is being compared to, is often a more natural way of expressing yourself. Especially when it’s clear from the context what you’re referring to.
Alisha:I see! But I don’t fully understand the structure of this sentence just yet.
Satsuki:Don't worry, we’ll break it down in two parts to make it easier.
Alisha:Great! We’ll start with the first part, “it is cheaper”.
Satsuki:Which is ‘det är billigare’. ‘Billigare’ is the comparative form of the adjective ‘billig’.
Alisha:Does that adjective conjugate regularly?
Satsuki:Yes, so to switch it to comparative form, you simply add ‘–are’ to ‘billig’ and you get ‘billigare’.
Alisha:Okay, that wasn’t too difficult. How about the second part of the sentence, “to send the package by boat”?
Satsuki:Yes, that’s the part that ‘det är billigare’ (“it is cheaper”) is referring to, and “to send the package by boat” is ‘att skicka paketet med båt’.
Alisha:Is the verb “to send” in the second part of the sentence in its infinitive form?
Satsuki:Yes, the Swedish verb for “to send”, ‘att skicka’ is in the infinitive. Now, let’s practice forming other sentences using the same structure.
Alisha:How would I say “It’s more expensive to send the package by air”?
Satsuki:Let’s start with the first part of the sentence “It’s more expensive”.
Alisah Firstly, how do you say “expensive”?
Satsuki:It’s ‘dyr’, and since this is also an adjective that conjugates regularly, we just add the ending ‘–are’ to make it into the comparative form.
Alisha:And how would that sound?
Satsuki:‘Dyr’ becomes ‘dyrare’. And the first part of the sentence, “it’s more expensive”, is therefore ‘det är dyrare’.
Alisha:Okay, now let’s talk about the second part of the sentence, “to send the package by air”.
Satsuki:Well, since we’re still talking about sending something, the verb we’ll use is ‘att skicka’, followed by the “the package by air” part, which is ‘paketet med flyg’.
Alisha:Okay, now let’s put that together. “To send the package by air” in Swedish is
Satsuki:‘Att skicka paketet med flyg’.
Alisha:And the whole sentence “it’s more expensive to send the package by air” would be…
Satsuki:‘Det är dyrare att skicka paketet med flyg’. Listeners, repeat after me ‘Det är dyrare att skicka paketet med flyg’ [pause]
Alisha:Okay, let’s try another one! How would I say “It’s *faster* to send the package by air”?
Satsuki:Again, let’s start with the first part of the sentence.
Alisha:Okay, how do you say “faster” in Swedish?
Satsuki:Well “fast” in Swedish is ‘snabb’ and it also conjugates regularly, so to make it into comparative form, you just add ‘–are’. ‘Snabbare’.
Alisha:And the second part of the sentence?
Satsuki:The second part of the sentence is the same as we used last time. “to send the package by air”, which translates to ‘att skicka paketet med flyg’.
Alisha:Okay, let’s put it together! “It’s faster to send the package by air” in Swedish is?
Satsuki:‘Det är snabbare att skicka paketet med flyg’. Now, listeners repeat after me!
Satsuki:‘Det är snabbare att skicka paketet med flyg’.
Alisha:Great! I think that’ll do it for this lesson.
Satsuki:Yes, great work everyone!
Alisha:Make sure you check the lesson notes, and we’ll see you next time!
Satsuki:Hej då!

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