Breakdown of Blev varen leveret i går?
i går
yesterday
blive
to be (passive auxiliary)
varen
the product
levere
to deliver
Questions & Answers about Blev varen leveret i går?
Why does the sentence use blev instead of var for 'was'?
In Danish, the action passive focuses on an event happening. Using blev (the past tense of at blive) plus the past participle leveret means the actual act of delivery took place yesterday. If you said var leveret, it would describe a state, meaning it was already in a delivered state before yesterday.
Why is leveret separated from blev?
This is a yes/no question, so the first verb moves to the front. Since the passive voice uses two verbs here (the helper blev and the main action leveret), the helper takes the first position. The subject (varen) sits between them, just like in the English translation.
Why does leveret end in -t?
leveret is the past participle of at levere (to deliver). In passive sentences, this participle must agree with the subject. Because varen is a singular en word, the participle gets the standard -t ending. If the subject were plural, like varerne (the products), it would add an -e and become leverede.
What is the base word of varen?
The base word is en vare, which means a product, item, or good. By adding the -n at the end, it becomes the definite form: varen (the product).