An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 25 most common Swedish idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Swedish idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, Hålla tummarna literally means "to hold the thumbs" but is used to mean to wish someone luck, to hope something goes well. This free page ranks the 25 most common Swedish idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 25 idioms, most common first.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of August 2026.
Hålla tummarna
Literally to hold the thumbs
Means to wish someone luck, to hope something goes well
English idiom keep your fingers crossed
Example Jag håller tummarna för dig på provet imorgon.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you for the test tomorrow.
Note Swedes squeeze the thumb inside a closed fist rather than crossing two fingers.
Ta det med en nypa salt
Literally to take it with a pinch of salt
Means to not believe something fully, to treat it with some doubt
English idiom take it with a grain of salt
Example Ta hans historier med en nypa salt, han överdriver gärna.
Take his stories with a grain of salt, he does like to exaggerate.
Slå två flugor i en smäll
Literally to hit two flies in one swat
Means to solve two things with a single action
English idiom kill two birds with one stone
Example Om vi handlar mat på vägen hem slår vi två flugor i en smäll.
If we buy groceries on the way home, we kill two birds with one stone.
Gå åt skogen
Literally to go towards the forest
Means to go badly wrong, to end in failure
English idiom to go south
Example Hela projektet gick åt skogen efter att chefen slutade.
The whole project went south after the boss quit.
Note Informal. The related "Dra åt skogen!", aimed at a person, means "get lost" and is rude.
Ha is i magen
Literally to have ice in the stomach
Means to stay calm and patient under pressure
English idiom to keep your cool
Example Målvakten hade is i magen och räddade straffen.
The goalkeeper kept his cool and saved the penalty.
Det är ingen ko på isen
Literally there is no cow on the ice
Means there is no rush and nothing to worry about
Example Ta det lugnt, det är ingen ko på isen.
Take it easy, there's no rush.
Note The longer version adds "så länge rumpan är i land" (as long as the backside is on shore), which people often quote for fun.
Ingen fara på taket
Literally no danger on the roof
Means there is no problem, everything is fine
English idiom no worries
Example Ingen fara på taket, vi hinner ändå.
No worries, we'll still make it in time.
Gå som katten kring het gröt
Literally to walk like the cat around hot porridge
Means to avoid saying what you really mean
English idiom beat around the bush
Example Sluta gå som katten kring het gröt och säg vad du tycker.
Stop beating around the bush and say what you think.
Ta tjuren vid hornen
Literally to take the bull by the horns
Means to deal with a difficult problem head on
English idiom take the bull by the horns
Example Det är dags att ta tjuren vid hornen och prata med chefen.
It's time to take the bull by the horns and talk to the boss.
Bita i det sura äpplet
Literally to bite into the sour apple
Means to accept something unpleasant that cannot be avoided
English idiom bite the bullet
Example Jag får bita i det sura äpplet och betala böterna.
I'll have to bite the bullet and pay the fine.
Ha en skruv lös
Literally to have a screw loose
Means to be a bit crazy or eccentric
English idiom have a screw loose
Example Hon har verkligen en skruv lös ibland.
She really has a screw loose sometimes.
Vara ute och cykla
Literally to be out cycling
Means to be completely mistaken about something
English idiom to be barking up the wrong tree
Example Om du tror att jag ljög är du helt ute och cyklar.
If you think I lied, you're completely off the mark.
Glida in på en räkmacka
Literally to slide in on a shrimp sandwich
Means to get somewhere easily, without having to work for it
English idiom to have it handed to you on a silver platter
Example Han har inte glidit in på någon räkmacka, han har jobbat hårt för allt.
He hasn't had anything handed to him on a silver platter, he has worked hard for everything.
Note Usually said in the negative, to insist that someone earned what they have.
Trampa i klaveret
Literally to step on the piano
Means to say something tactless and embarrassing
English idiom put your foot in your mouth
Example Han trampade i klaveret när han frågade om hennes ålder.
He put his foot in his mouth when he asked about her age.
Note Klaver is an old collective word for keyboard instruments, so the picture is someone stomping on the keys.
Lägga näsan i blöt
Literally to put the nose in soak
Means to interfere in something that is none of your business
English idiom to stick your nose in
Example Han måste alltid lägga näsan i blöt i andras affärer.
He always has to stick his nose into other people's business.
Dra sitt strå till stacken
Literally to pull one's straw to the anthill
Means to contribute your share to a shared effort
English idiom to do your bit
Example Alla i gruppen måste dra sitt strå till stacken.
Everyone in the group has to do their bit.
Här ligger en hund begraven
Literally here lies a dog buried
Means something suspicious is going on, there is more to this than it seems
English idiom there's something fishy going on
Example Varför säger ingen sanningen? Här ligger en hund begraven.
Why is nobody telling the truth? There's something fishy going on here.
Ana ugglor i mossen
Literally to sense owls in the bog
Means to suspect that something is not right
English idiom to smell a rat
Example Jag anar ugglor i mossen, han brukar inte vara så tyst.
I smell a rat, he isn't usually this quiet.
Det är hugget som stucket
Literally it is chopped as stabbed
Means it makes no real difference which option you pick
English idiom six of one, half a dozen of the other
Example Vi kan åka nu eller imorgon, det är hugget som stucket.
We can leave now or tomorrow, it's six of one and half a dozen of the other.
Ha rent mjöl i påsen
Literally to have clean flour in the bag
Means to be honest and have nothing to hide
English idiom to have clean hands
Example Företaget hävdar att de har rent mjöl i påsen.
The company claims it has nothing to hide.
Ha tummen mitt i handen
Literally to have the thumb in the middle of the hand
Means to be clumsy with your hands, bad at practical work
English idiom to be all thumbs
Example Be inte mig fixa lampan, jag har tummen mitt i handen.
Don't ask me to fix the lamp, I'm all thumbs.
Ha en räv bakom örat
Literally to have a fox behind the ear
Means to be sly and to have a hidden plan
English idiom to be a sly fox
Example Akta dig för honom, han har en räv bakom örat.
Watch out for him, he's a sly fox.
Kasta pärlor åt svin
Literally to throw pearls to swine
Means to give something valuable to someone who cannot appreciate it
English idiom cast pearls before swine
Example Att bjuda honom på ett fint vin är som att kasta pärlor åt svin.
Serving him a fine wine is like casting pearls before swine.
Note It comes from the Bible, so it sounds a little literary.
Skita i det blå skåpet
Literally to shit in the blue cupboard
Means to go far too far, to blunder badly
Example Nu har du verkligen skitit i det blå skåpet.
Now you've really gone way too far.
Note Crude language, fine among close friends but not at work. The 1981 film Göta kanal made it a household phrase.
Sätta sin sista potatis
Literally to plant one's last potato
Means to do something you will not get away with, to be finished
English idiom your goose is cooked
Example Om du sprider ryktet vidare har du satt din sista potatis.
If you spread that rumor any further, your goose is cooked.
Note Informal and usually said half jokingly.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Hålla tummarna comes out as "to hold the thumbs", which makes no sense until you know it means to wish someone luck, to hope something goes well.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Swedish sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Swedish idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with Hålla tummarna, Ta det med en nypa salt, Slå två flugor i en smäll, Gå åt skogen, Ha is i magen. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 25 of them with meanings and example sentences.
In Swedish, "Hålla tummarna" translates literally as "to hold the thumbs", but it actually means to wish someone luck, to hope something goes well. The closest English idiom is "keep your fingers crossed". Example: Jag håller tummarna för dig på provet imorgon. ("I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you for the test tomorrow.")
The Swedish equivalent is "Hålla tummarna", literally "to hold the thumbs". Example: Jag håller tummarna för dig på provet imorgon. ("I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you for the test tomorrow.")
In Swedish, an idiom is called talesätt, and a proverb is ordspråk. Swedes say talesätt (or uttryck) for a fixed figurative phrase that you slot into a sentence, with idiom as the technical linguistic term, while an ordspråk is a proverb, a complete standalone sentence carrying a piece of folk wisdom.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Hålla tummarna translates literally as "to hold the thumbs", yet it means to wish someone luck, to hope something goes well. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Swedish with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.