Breakdown of Vi er begyndt at forstå at det at slappe af reducerer pulsen.
være
to be
det
it (neuter)
vi
we
forstå
to understand
Questions & Answers about Vi er begyndt at forstå at det at slappe af reducerer pulsen.
Why do we use det at slappe af instead of just at slappe af for 'relaxing'?
In Danish, when an infinitive phrase acts as the subject of a sentence or clause, you typically place the pronoun det (it) in front of the infinitive marker at. In this sentence, det at slappe af (the act of relaxing) is the entire subject of the verb reducerer.
There are three instances of at in this sentence. Do they all have the same function?
No, they have two different roles. The first and third (at forstå, at slappe af) are infinitive markers, equivalent to the English 'to'. The second at is a subordinating conjunction meaning 'that', which connects the main clause to the dependent clause.
Why does the sentence use er begyndt instead of har begyndt for 'have begun'?
In Danish, verbs describing a change of state or motion use være (to be) as their auxiliary verb for the perfect tenses, rather than have (to have). Because begynde (to begin) marks a change of state from not doing something to doing it, it requires er instead of har.