Breakdown of Min bror snublede over ledningen og var lige ved at falde.
og
and
min
my
broren
the brother
lige
just, right (now, here)
over
over, above
falde
to fall
være ved at
to be about to (nearly)
snuble
to trip
ledningen
the cord
Questions & Answers about Min bror snublede over ledningen og var lige ved at falde.
What does var lige ved at falde mean in this context?
It uses the aspectual construction være lige ved at followed by the infinitive verb falde (to fall). In the past tense (var), it translates to 'was just about to fall' or 'almost fell.' It shows an action that was on the very edge of happening but didn't actually occur.
How does adding lige change the meaning of være ved at here?
Normally, være ved at implies an ongoing action, similar to the English '-ing' form. Adding lige changes the meaning entirely to an imminent action: he was 'just about to' fall, emphasizing that he caught his balance before the fall actually happened.
Why is there no subject after og? Shouldn't it be og han var...?
Just like in English, when two verbs in a sentence share the exact same subject (Min bror), you do not need to repeat the subject pronoun for the second verb (var). It is perfectly natural to just link the actions with og.
What type of cord is ledningen?
The word en ledning specifically refers to a wire, cable, or electrical cord. The -en on the end makes it definite ('the cord'). If he had tripped over a non-electrical rope or string instead, you would use a word like rebet or snoren.
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