A2 Expressions & Patterns 1 min read Fácil

Future Intentions

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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Use 'ska' + infinitive verb to express your future intentions and plans in Swedish.

  • Use 'ska' followed by the base form of the verb: 'Jag ska äta' (I will eat).
  • The verb 'ska' does not change form regardless of the subject: 'Vi ska äta' (We will eat).
  • For negative sentences, add 'inte' after 'ska': 'Jag ska inte äta' (I will not eat).
Subject + ska + Verb (infinitive)

Meanings

The auxiliary verb 'ska' is used to express future intentions, plans, or firm resolutions.

1

Intentions

Expressing a personal plan or decision.

“Jag ska köpa en bil.”

“Vi ska resa till Stockholm.”

2

Predictions

Predicting a future event based on current evidence.

“Det ska regna imorgon.”

“Det ska bli en bra dag.”

3

Obligation

Sometimes 'ska' implies a duty or requirement.

“Du ska göra din läxa.”

“Vi ska vara där klockan åtta.”

The 'Ska' Formation

Subject Modal Verb (Inf) Example
Jag ska äta Jag ska äta
Du ska äta Du ska äta
Han/Hon ska äta Han ska äta
Vi ska äta Vi ska äta
Ni ska äta Ni ska äta
De ska äta De ska äta

Reference Table

Reference table for Future Intentions
Form Structure Example
Affirmative Subj + ska + Verb Jag ska träna
Negative Subj + ska + inte + Verb Jag ska inte träna
Question Ska + Subj + Verb? Ska du träna?
Short Answer (Yes) Ja, [subj] ska. Ja, jag ska.
Short Answer (No) Nej, [subj] ska inte. Nej, jag ska inte.
Future Plan Subj + ska + [time] Vi ska resa imorgon

Espectro de formalidad

Formal
Jag avser att komma.

Jag avser att komma. (Social invitation)

Neutral
Jag ska komma.

Jag ska komma. (Social invitation)

Informal
Jag kommer.

Jag kommer. (Social invitation)

Jerga
Jag dyker upp.

Jag dyker upp. (Social invitation)

The Future Intentions Map

SKA

Plans

  • resa travel
  • köpa buy

Obligations

  • städa clean
  • jobba work

Ska vs. Kommer att

Ska (Intentions)
Jag ska läsa I intend to read
Kommer att (Predictions)
Det kommer att regna It will rain
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Examples by Level

1

Jag ska äta.

I will eat.

2

Vi ska sova.

We will sleep.

3

Hon ska gå.

She will go.

4

De ska läsa.

They will read.

1

Ska du följa med på bio?

Are you coming to the cinema?

2

Jag ska inte jobba imorgon.

I will not work tomorrow.

3

Vad ska vi göra i helgen?

What are we doing this weekend?

4

Han ska köpa en ny cykel.

He is going to buy a new bike.

1

Vi ska se till att allt är klart.

We will ensure everything is ready.

2

Det ska bli intressant att se resultatet.

It will be interesting to see the result.

3

Du ska inte behöva vänta länge.

You shouldn't have to wait long.

4

Ska vi satsa på det här projektet?

Should we commit to this project?

1

Det är bestämt att vi ska genomföra reformen.

It is decided that we will implement the reform.

2

Man ska alltid vara ärlig mot sig själv.

One should always be honest with oneself.

3

Det ska visa sig om vi hade rätt.

It will show whether we were right.

4

Vi ska inte låta detta hindra oss.

We will not let this stop us.

1

Det ska till mycket för att ändra hans åsikt.

It will take a lot to change his opinion.

2

Vad ska det tjäna till?

What is the point of that?

3

Det ska bli mig ett nöje.

It will be my pleasure.

4

Man ska inte ropa hej förrän man är över bäcken.

Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

1

Det skulle så vara, att vi ses imorgon.

It is to be that we meet tomorrow.

2

Det ska väl inte behövas?

That shouldn't be necessary, should it?

3

Det ska till en hel del mod för det.

It requires a great deal of courage.

4

Det ska inte ske igen.

It shall not happen again.

Easily Confused

Future Intentions vs Ska vs. Kommer att

Both express the future.

Future Intentions vs Ska vs. Vill

Both express future desires.

Future Intentions vs Ska vs. Måste

Both imply obligation.

Errores comunes

✗

Jag ska att äta

✓

Jag ska äta

Never use 'att' after 'ska'.
✗

Jag skar äta

✓

Jag ska äta

Ska does not conjugate.
✗

Ska jag äta?

✓

Ska du äta?

Mixing up person in questions.
✗

Jag ska inte att gå

✓

Jag ska inte gå

Double error with 'att'.
✗

Du ska gå?

✓

Ska du gå?

Incorrect word order for questions.
✗

Jag ska inte köpa den

✓

Jag ska inte köpa den

Actually correct, but watch word order.
✗

Ska vi att resa?

✓

Ska vi resa?

Still adding 'att'.
✗

Det ska regna

✓

Det kommer att regna

Using 'ska' for prediction.
✗

Jag ska ha gjort det

✓

Jag kommer att ha gjort det

Future perfect confusion.
✗

Ska vi ses?

✓

Ska vi ses?

Correct, but watch reflexive.
✗

Det ska till att man gör det

✓

Det krävs att man gör det

Overusing 'ska' as a filler.
✗

Han ska vara där

✓

Han förväntas vara där

Ambiguity of 'ska'.
✗

Det ska bli

✓

Det blir

Unnecessary future marker.

Sentence Patterns

Jag ska ___ imorgon.

Ska du ___ med?

Vi ska ___ att allt är klart.

Det ska ___ mycket för att...

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Ska vi ses?

Job Interview very common

Jag ska bidra med...

Travel common

När ska tåget gå?

Food Delivery common

Jag ska ha en pizza.

Social Media common

Jag ska resa till Italien!

Email common

Vi ska återkomma.

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💡

Keep it simple

Don't overthink the future. Just use 'ska' for everything you plan to do.
⚠️

No 'att'

The most common mistake is adding 'att'. Remember: ska + verb.
🎯

Question order

Always flip the subject and 'ska' when asking a question.
💬

Polite plans

Using 'ska' is direct and clear, which is appreciated in Swedish culture.

Smart Tips

Use 'ska' to list your tasks.

Jag äter lunch. → Jag ska äta lunch.

Always start with 'Ska'.

Du kommer? → Ska du komma?

Use 'kommer att' instead of 'ska'.

Det ska regna. → Det kommer att regna.

Use 'skall' for a more formal tone.

Vi ska återkomma. → Vi skall återkomma.

Pronunciación

/ska/

Ska

Pronounced like 'skah'. The 'sk' sound before 'a' is a hard 'sk' sound.

Question intonation

Ska du GÅ? ↑

Rising pitch at the end for questions.

Memorize It

Mnemonic

SKA stands for 'S'urely 'K'eeping 'A'ction.

Visual Association

Imagine a person holding a calendar (the 'S') and pointing to a future date (the 'K') while starting to run (the 'A').

Rhyme

When the future you want to plan, use 'ska' as fast as you can.

Story

Erik has a big plan. He says 'Jag ska resa' (I will travel). He packs his bag. He says 'Jag ska inte glömma passet' (I will not forget the passport). His friend asks 'Ska du flyga?' (Are you going to fly?). Erik smiles.

Word Web

planeraframtidavsiktbeslutviljamål

Desafío

Write down 3 things you are going to do tomorrow using 'Jag ska...'.

Notas culturales

Swedes value punctuality. Using 'ska' to confirm a time is very common.

In casual speech, 'ska' is often shortened to 'ska' (no change, but faster).

In formal writing, 'skall' is sometimes used instead of 'ska'.

Comes from the Old Norse 'skulu', meaning 'to be obliged to'.

Conversation Starters

“

Vad ska du göra i helgen?

“

Ska vi äta lunch tillsammans?

“

Vad ska du satsa på i år?

“

Ska man verkligen prioritera karriären?

Journal Prompts

Skriv om din dag imorgon.
Vilka är dina mål för språkinlärning?
Hur ser din perfekta framtid ut?
Diskutera vikten av att planera.
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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank.

Jag ___ äta lunch.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ska
Ska is the correct modal.
Choose the correct sentence. Opción múltiple

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska gå
No 'att' after ska.
Fix the error. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Du ska gå?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ska du gå?
Verb-second rule.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

Arrange the words in the correct order:

All words placed

Click words above to build the sentence

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Vi ska äta pizza
Standard word order.
Translate to Swedish. Traducción

I will work tomorrow.

Answer starts with: Jag...

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska jobba imorgon
Correct structure.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Ska du resa? B: ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ja, jag ska
Short answer form.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Use: ska, inte, läsa, jag.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska inte läsa
Correct negative placement.
Match the meaning. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: All of the above
Ska covers various nuances.

Score: /8

Ejercicios de practica

8 exercises
Fill in the blank.

Jag ___ äta lunch.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: ska
Ska is the correct modal.
Choose the correct sentence. Opción múltiple

Which is correct?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska gå
No 'att' after ska.
Fix the error. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Du ska gå?

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ska du gå?
Verb-second rule.
Reorder the words. Sentence Reorder

ska / vi / äta / pizza

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Vi ska äta pizza
Standard word order.
Translate to Swedish. Traducción

I will work tomorrow.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska jobba imorgon
Correct structure.
Complete the dialogue. Dialogue Completion

A: Ska du resa? B: ___.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ja, jag ska
Short answer form.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

Use: ska, inte, läsa, jag.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Jag ska inte läsa
Correct negative placement.
Match the meaning. Match Pairs

Match 'ska' usage.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: All of the above
Ska covers various nuances.

Score: /8

Preguntas frecuentes (8)

Mostly yes, for intentions. Use 'kommer att' for predictions.

Modal verbs in Swedish take the infinitive directly.

Yes, 'skall' is just a more formal version.

Add 'inte' after 'ska'.

Use 'vill' instead of 'ska'.

No, it is standard and clear.

Use 'skulle' for past intentions.

Start with 'Ska'.

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In Other Languages

English moderate

will / going to

Swedish 'ska' is strictly for intentions.

German high

sollen

German 'werden' is the primary future marker.

Spanish high

ir a + infinitive

Spanish 'ir a' conjugates by person.

Japanese moderate

tsumori

Japanese is agglutinative and sentence-final.

Arabic moderate

sa- / sawfa

Arabic is a prefix, not a separate modal verb.

Chinese moderate

yào

Chinese has no verb conjugation.

Previous
Future with 'Kommer att'
Next
Future Predictions

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