Det dansas

Level 6

Det dansas has a grammatical subject, det, but does not name the people dancing. This focuses on an activity rather than its performers.

How It Works

The impersonal passive provides a way to express an action without an agent, particularly when the focus is on the activity itself. It can describe a repeated activity or a particular event; the final phone-call example need not be general or ongoing.

Formation and Tense
A basic subject-first pattern uses det + passive verb phrase. Auxiliaries carry tense when present, and fronted elements change the order of det and the finite verb. This can be used in various tenses:

  • Present: Det pratas om valet. (There is talk about the election.)
  • Past (Preterite): Det arbetades sent igår. (There was working late yesterday.)
  • Perfect: Det har skvallrats en hel del. (There has been quite a bit of gossiping.)
  • Future: Det kommer att firas med en stor fest. (It will be celebrated with a big party.)

Comparison with 'man'
Both man and the impersonal passive can leave the actors unspecified, but with a nuance. 'Man' feels more like an active, unspecified agent, while 'det...-s' describes the scene or atmosphere.

  • Man: Man jobbar hårt här. (One works hard here.) - Focus on the people working.
  • Impersonal Passive: Det jobbas hårt här. (There is hard work being done here.) - Focus on the activity of working.

Word Order with Topicalization
When an adverbial is moved to the front of the sentence for emphasis (topicalization), the standard verb-second rule applies. The verb comes second, and the formal subject 'det' moves after it.

  • Standard: Det dansades i parken igår.
  • Topicalized: Igår dansades det i parken. (Yesterday, there was dancing in the park.)

This structure is common in both formal and informal Swedish to describe a general state of affairs.

The actor is generally understood as human in these activity constructions, but need not mean people in general: Det har ringts från sjukhuset can refer to one particular caller whose identity is not stated.

Examples (5)

  1. Det dansas och sjungs på festen.

    There is dancing and singing at the party.

    Word by Word: It is-danced and is-sung at the-party.

    Dansa and sjunga are used without expressed objects here. Their s-passive forms describe the dancing and singing at the party; both verbs also have uses with objects.

  2. Här arbetas det dygnet runt.

    Here, work is done around the clock.

    Word by Word: Here is-worked it the-day around.

    An example of topicalization. The adverb 'Här' is fronted, so the verb 'arbetas' comes second, followed by the subject 'det'.

  3. Det pratades mycket om den nya filmen.

    There was a lot of talk about the new movie.

    Word by Word: It was-talked much about the new movie.

    The verb is in the past tense (preterite), 'pratades', to describe a past activity.

  4. På mötet diskuterades det livligt.

    At the meeting, there was lively discussion.

    Word by Word: At the-meeting was-discussed it lively.

    Topicalization with a prepositional phrase ('På mötet') at the front, triggering the V2 rule where the verb 'diskuterades' precedes the subject 'det'.

  5. Det har ringts från sjukhuset, men ingen svarade.

    There has been a call from the hospital, but no one answered.

    Word by Word: It has been-rung from the-hospital, but no-one answered.

    An example in the perfect tense ('har ringts'). It can refer to a specific but unknown agent.

Common Mistakes

  • Forgetting the formal subject 'det'.

    Pratas mycket på kontoret.
    Det pratas mycket på kontoret.

    Use det in this ordinary complete statement. Informal notes and other context-dependent subject omissions do occur, and some constructions use här or där instead. The shown fragment is not the basic complete sentence pattern.

  • Incorrect word order when an adverbial is fronted.

    Igår det dansades i parken.
    Igår dansades det i parken.

    When an element other than the subject starts the sentence, the verb must come in the second position, followed by the subject ('det'). This is the V2 (verb-second) rule.

How It Connects

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Det dansasLevel 6

Learn This First

To understand impersonal passives like 'Det dansas' (There is dancing), you first need to know how to form the s-passive. You also need to understand how the word 'det' can act as a dummy subject in Swedish. Finally, it is helpful to understand that while standard passives require an object to become the subject, impersonal passives allow verbs that don't normally take objects to be used in a passive sense.

Words in This Pattern