How to Say "Twenty" in Swedish

tjugo

/²ɕʉː.ɡʊ/

The Swedish word for twenty is tjugo.

The term is used as a cardinal number.

Meaning: cardinal number (num)

Which one should you use?

While tjugo is the standard cardinal number, tjuga is used informally to refer to the number itself or a twenty-kronor bill.

tjugo is the standard form, whereas tjuga is a colloquial or informal way to refer to the number twenty or a twenty-unit banknote.

It is pronounced as /²ɕʉː.ɡʊ/ and has two syllables.

The word tjugo comes from the Proto-Germanic *twai tigiwiz, which literally means 'two tens'.
In older Swedish literature and counting traditions, twenty was often treated as a base unit similar to how the English 'score' functions.
In many Swedish dialects, the 'g' in tjugo is dropped or softened so much that it sounds almost like 'tyu-o'.

Muiriel har fyllt tjugo.
Muiriel has turned twenty.
This sentence is useful for describing someone reaching the age of twenty using tjugo.
Tatoeba #9040945 by morbrorper, translation #1415809 by CN
Tjugo delat på två är tio.
Twenty divided by two is ten.
This sentence is useful for a mathematical context using tjugo.
Tatoeba #11231043 by Pineapple, translation #7977027 by deniko
Han fångade tjugo fjärilar.
He caught twenty butterflies.
This sentence is useful for counting a specific number of objects using tjugo.
Tatoeba #4409102 by herrsilen, translation #304291 by _undertoad
Jag har tjugo äpplen i korgen.
I have twenty apples in the basket.
7 more sentences on Tatoeba

Karl and Maja are checking the price of a shirt.

Sources

Wiktionary, “twenty” translations and entries tjugo, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries tjugo, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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