Breakdown of Naboen er lidt af en særling som plejer at snakke med sig selv.
være
to be
en
a / an (common)
naboen
the neighbor
at
to
Questions & Answers about Naboen er lidt af en særling som plejer at snakke med sig selv.
How does lidt af en work here, and would it change if the noun were a neuter (et) word?
Lidt af en translates directly to 'a bit of a' and is used to lightly emphasize a characteristic. If the noun were neuter, like mysterium (mystery), you would change en to et, making it lidt af et mysterium. The word lidt stays exactly the same.
How does the verb plejer work in this sentence?
The verb at pleje (here conjugated as plejer) is used to express a habit or something someone usually does. Instead of using an adverb for 'usually' alongside the main verb, Danish typically uses plejer at followed by the infinitive (snakke). It functions just like saying 'tends to talk' or 'is in the habit of talking'.
Could I use der instead of som to mean 'who' in this sentence?
Yes, absolutely! In this relative clause, the pronoun acts as the subject (the one doing the talking). When the relative pronoun is the subject of its clause, you can use either som or der. Writing ... der plejer at snakke ... would be perfectly correct and very natural.
Why does the sentence use sig selv instead of ham selv?