Finally Nail Swedish
en and ett.
Swedish nouns are either en or ett – and picking the right one isn't a matter of luck. Artikulera teaches you the rules behind en/ett and trains your intuition through science-based techniques to help you sound like a native. Developed in collaboration with SFI* teachers.
Free to download · No credit card required
Free with 100 nouns · Premium unlocks 4,500+
* Swedish for immigrants – a free, state-funded language education program in Sweden for adult immigrants.
"Artikulera lets me learn and practise in a dynamic and effective way. Articles, plural forms, new words and more. A very complete app."
Just Two Tiny Words Yet So Hard to Master
You can have great pronunciation, solid vocabulary, and near-perfect grammar – yet still hesitate every time you reach for an article. En bil? Ett bil? The truth is, most nouns follow learnable patterns. Once you know the rules, you can make a confident guess – even for words you've never seen.
30
learnable rules that cover the vast majority of Swedish nouns
4,500+
nouns to practise, from everyday words to advanced vocabulary
5 ⭐
stars to fully master a noun – then it moves to your Learned list
How Artikulera Works
Memorize the exceptions and build intuition for the 30 rules of thumb – at the same time.
Explore
Discover nouns across three difficulty levels – common, uncommon, and rare. Each one you find is added to your Learning list.
Practice
Flashcard-style reviews drill the nouns you're learning. Answer correctly within the time limit to earn a ⭐. A wrong answer resets your stars – Artikulera rewards recall that's fast enough to use in real conversation.
Graduate
Collect 5 stars for a noun and it graduates to your Learned list. That noun is yours for good. A daily Noun of the Day and streak reminders keep you coming back.
Learn the Rules
After a wrong answer, Artikulera shows which of the 30 rules of thumb apply – so you learn the pattern, not just the word. A mastery ring for each rule fills as you apply it consistently across different nouns.
The Science
Built on Spaced Repetition
Research going back to Ebbinghaus (1885) shows we forget most new information within hours – unless we review it at just the right moment. Each timely review rebuilds the memory trace stronger than before, so the next forgetting curve is shallower.
Artikulera's 5-star system is built on this principle. When you practice nouns, Artikulera shows you the word right before you're about to forget it. Spaced repetition only works if you keep coming back. That's why Artikulera keeps you engaged with daily streak reminders, a new Word of the Day every morning, and badges that celebrate every milestone along the way.
Memory retention over time
Each ★ = one successful timed review. After 5 stars, the word is permanently learned.
See It in Action
Everything you need to master Swedish en/ett – in one app.
Everything You Need to Get It Right
Multiple modes, smart repetition, real progress.
Gender Affects Every Form of a Noun – Practise All Three
Getting Swedish gender right isn't a one-time task. It shows up every time you use a noun – as an article, a definite suffix, or a plural ending. Artikulera trains all three so the knowledge transfers to real speech.
Article
The foundation. Tap en, ett, or båda for each noun.
Definite form
The article becomes a suffix. Gender determines which ending to use.
Plural
Plural endings vary by gender. Get it wrong and the sentence sounds off.
Go From Memorised to Instinctive
Race the clock in Time Challenge mode. When you can answer fast, the gender has moved from memorised to intuitive.
Learn One Rule, Unlock Hundreds of Words
30 patterns cover the vast majority of Swedish nouns. Browse them, see real examples, and watch your mastery ring fill as you apply each rule.
Study Together and Learn Faster
Build custom noun lists for your job, your course, or any topic. Share with classmates via SMS, WhatsApp, Facebook, LinkedIn, or a QR code – everyone practises the same words.
Learn Every Time You Pick Up Your Phone
Home and lock screen widgets rotate through all 30 rules of thumb – reinforcing patterns passively throughout your day.
Celebrate Every Step Forward
Earn badges as you hit milestones. Each one marks real progress you can share.
See Exactly How Far You've Come
Track your streak, words discovered, learned, and stars earned. Keep the habit alive with daily stats and advanced charts for Premium users.
A Gentle Nudge to Build a Learning Habit
Opt in to a daily reminder and Artikulera will notify you if you haven't practised yet. Completely optional – turn it on or off in the app settings whenever you like.
Rules You Can Actually Remember
Instead of brute-forcing 4,500+ nouns by rote, Artikulera shows you the rule of thumb (pattern) behind. Most suffixes and meaning-based (semantic) rules of thumb predict gender reliably. Learn the rule once and you will recognize hundreds of words.
As you practice, Artikulera tracks how well you've internalized each of the 30 rules – not just whether you've seen them, but whether you can consistently apply them to determine gender correctly. Each rule has a mastery indicator that fills with every correct answer and drops when you get it wrong.
Start learning the rules🏥 -het
frihet, rörlighet, säkerhet…
🏋️ -ing
rökning, träning, utbildning…
🌱 -ande / -ende
leende, fordon, varande…
🐾 Animals & people
hund, katt, lärare, chef…
30 rules in total – browse them all in the app
Noun Lookup
Look Up Any Swedish Noun
Enter a Swedish noun to see its grammatical gender and which of the 30 rules of thumb apply.
Earn Stars – Unlock a Little Piece of Sweden
Every badge you collect opens a window into Swedish culture – a photo and a story about the country whose language you're learning.
First badge · 10 stars
Första fikat
Swedish fika is a cornerstone of social life. The word originates from 19th-century backslang for kaffi (coffee). Beyond just a caffeine fix, fika is a mandatory pause to connect with others over treats like cinnamon buns. It's an essential ritual for slowing down and savoring the moment together.
25 badges to collect – click to explore
Educators
What Swedish Teachers Are Saying
The structure is logical, pedagogical, intuitive and easy to overview.
N.D., SFI teacher
A fun app that trains exactly this tricky part of Swedish grammar, in an enjoyable way.
Catarina, SFI teacher
Well designed, looks nice, pedagogical, easy to navigate. I think many people will appreciate it!
Katrin, slowswedish.com
Free to Start. Premium When You're Ready.
No commitment until you decide – cancel anytime from App Store settings.
Yearly
$19.99
/ year
~$1.67 per month
30-day free trial
- Everything in Free
- 4,500+ nouns (all levels)
- Time Challenge helps you build intuition for en/ett
- Custom Noun Lists to share with friends
- Widgets that remind you about the rules
- Advanced statistics
Monthly
$1.99
/ month
14-day free trial
- Everything in Free
- 4,500+ nouns (all levels)
- Time Challenge helps you build intuition for en/ett
- Custom Noun Lists to share with friends
- Widgets that remind you about the rules
- Advanced statistics
Free
$0
Forever free
- 100 most common nouns
- Article, definite & plural practice
- 30 Rules of Thumb
- 25 badges with facts about Sweden
- Noun of the Day
- Streaks & basic stats
- Time Challenge helps you build intuition for en/ett
- Custom Noun Lists to share with friends
- Widgets that remind you about the rules
Resources
Free Study Materials
Download our free printable study materials – word lists and the complete rules of thumb guide.
500 en-words
The 500 most common common-gender (en) nouns with links to the SAOB dictionary. Print it, pin it, or keep it on your phone.
Download PDF500 ett-words
The 500 most common neuter (ett) nouns with links to the SAOB dictionary. Print it, pin it, or keep it on your phone.
Download PDF30 Rules of Thumb
All 30 suffix and semantic rules that predict Swedish grammatical gender. A quick-reference guide you can print or keep on your phone.
Download PDFAndroid Version Coming Soon
Artikulera is currently iOS-only. Leave your email and we'll let you know the moment an Android version is available.
Learn Swedish en/ett
Grammar explainers, vocabulary guides, and cultural deep-dives — from mastering en/ett to navigating everyday life in Sweden.
1,000 nouns — en or ett?
The most common Swedish nouns with article, definite form, and plural. Search and filter in seconds.
31 rules of thumb
The suffix and semantic patterns that let you predict gender for most nouns you've never seen before.
The truth behind en and ett
Where Swedish grammatical gender comes from, why it exists, and why it's more learnable than it looks.
How to learn noun genders fast
Rules first, spaced repetition second, immersion third. The step-by-step method that actually works.
Learning Swedish: where to begin
A complete 2025 roadmap — what to learn first, which resources work, and common mistakes to avoid.
Why Duolingo falls short on gender
Why Swedish en vs ett trips learners up and where Duolingo misses the mark. Learn practical rules and targeted practice that works.
How to survive a Swedish grocery store
Filmjölk vs gräddfil, checkout phrases, and definite forms for food nouns. Your first solo trip sorted.
Meet the Larsson family — an ordinary Tuesday
Family vocab, telling time, tisdagsmys, and VAB — daily Swedish life explained through a story.
The unwritten rules of fika and lagom
Can you take the last kanelbulle? Who pays? What lagom means at work. The etiquette no phrasebook covers.
FAQ
Common Questions
What is Swedish grammatical gender (en/ett)?
Swedish has two grammatical genders: common gender (utrum), marked with the article en, and neuter gender (neutrum), marked with ett. Around 75–80% of Swedish nouns are en-words and 20–25% are ett-words. The gender of a noun determines its definite suffix (-en vs -et), plural endings, and pronoun agreement throughout a sentence.
What is the difference between en and ett in Swedish?
En marks common-gender nouns (en hund – a dog, en bil – a car), while ett marks neuter nouns (ett bord – a table, ett barn – a child). The distinction affects the definite form (hunden vs bordet), plural endings (hundar vs bord), and pronoun choice (den vs det). Swedish learners often struggle with en/ett because English lost its grammatical gender system centuries ago.
What are the rules of thumb for Swedish grammatical gender?
Artikulera teaches 30 rules of thumb – 26 suffix-based rules and 4 semantic rules. Examples: nouns ending in -het, -ing, or -else are almost always en-words; nouns ending in -ande or -ende are almost always ett-words. Semantic rules include: animals and people are almost always en-words. These patterns cover the vast majority of Swedish nouns and allow learners to make confident guesses even for unfamiliar words.
How many Swedish nouns does Artikulera include?
Artikulera includes 4,511 Swedish nouns ranked by frequency. The free tier gives access to the 100 most common nouns. A Premium subscription unlocks all 4,500+ nouns across three difficulty levels: common (top 10% by frequency), uncommon (top 10–40%), and rare (below the 60th percentile).
What is spaced repetition and how does Artikulera use it?
Spaced repetition is a memory technique, established by Ebbinghaus (1885), that schedules reviews just before the memory trace fades. Each timed review strengthens the trace so future forgetting is slower. Artikulera implements this through a 5-star system: each star represents one successful timed answer. A wrong answer resets the star count and returns the noun to the practice queue. After five consecutive correct answers within the time limit, the noun moves permanently to the Learned list.
Is Artikulera free to use?
Yes. Artikulera is free to download and includes 100 of the most common Swedish nouns, all three practice modes (article, definite form, and plural), all 30 rules of thumb, 25 badges, a daily Noun of the Day, and streak tracking – at no cost. Premium ($1.99/month with a 14-day free trial, or $19.99/year with a 30-day free trial) unlocks 4,500+ nouns, Time Challenge, custom Noun Lists, home and lock screen widgets, and advanced statistics.
Is Artikulera used in SFI classes?
Artikulera was developed in collaboration with SFI teachers (Svenska för invandrare – Swedish for Immigrants, a free state-funded language programme for adult immigrants in Sweden). Several SFI teachers have reviewed the app and recommended it to their students as a complement to classroom instruction.
Which devices does Artikulera support?
Artikulera is available for iPhone and iPad and requires iOS 17.6 or later. An Android version is in development – you can join the waitlist above.
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Start Sounding Like a Swede Today
100 free nouns, 30 rules, zero friction. If you already know some Swedish, you're closer than you think.
Requires iOS 17.6 or later