Breakdown of Hun prioriterer selvudvikling fordi hun stræber efter at blive bedre.
hun
she
at
to
blive
to stay / to become
fordi
because
bedre
better
prioritere
to prioritize
stræbe efter
to strive for
selvudviklingen
the self-development
Questions & Answers about Hun prioriterer selvudvikling fordi hun stræber efter at blive bedre.
Why do we use the infinitive at blive here instead of a full clause like at hun bliver?
Because the subject of the second action is the same as the first. When the person striving (the subject of stræber) is the exact same person becoming better, Danish strongly prefers the infinitive at blive rather than repeating the subject in a full clause like at hun bliver. This is known as the subject co-reference constraint.
What would happen to the sentence if she was striving for someone else to become better?
Because the subjects would no longer match, you could not use the at-infinitive. You would be forced to use a full at-clause to introduce the new subject. For example, if she strives for him to become better, the end of the sentence must change to efter at han bliver bedre.
Is it normal to put a preposition like efter right before an at-infinitive?
Yes, this is a very common pattern that often surprises English speakers. While English usually requires an -ing word after a preposition, Danish allows prepositions to be followed directly by an at-infinitive. The fixed verb phrase is at stræbe efter (to strive for), and it links directly to the action at blive bedre.
How does the word selvudvikling break down?
It is a compound noun made of selv (self) and udvikling (development). The noun udvikling comes from the verb at udvikle (to develop), which literally translates to folding out or unwinding, since it is built from ud (out) plus vikle (to wrap or wind).
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