Breakdown of Hvis han skulle tilstå, får vi endelig sandheden at vide.
han
he
vi
we
at
to
skulle
to have to / must / to be going to
vide
to know
hvis
if
sandheden
the truth
få
to get, to receive / to have (children)
endelig
at last, finally
tilstå
to confess
Questions & Answers about Hvis han skulle tilstå, får vi endelig sandheden at vide.
How does the 'får ... at vide' construction work in this sentence?
The phrase få at vide literally means 'get to know', but it is used in Danish to mean 'find out' or 'be told'. This is a receptive perception frame where the auxiliary verb får is separated from the sensory infinitive at vide. The object of the action, sandheden (the truth), is placed directly between them.
Why is the main clause verb får in the present tense when the if-clause uses the past tense skulle?
Danish often uses the past tense of a modal verb like skulle (should / were to) in an if-clause to show that a condition is hypothetical or unlikely. However, the main clause can still use the present tense får (acting as the future tense here) to express that if this unlikely event actually does happen, the result is absolutely certain to follow.
Why does the verb får come before the subject vi?
This is the V2 (verb-second) rule in action. Because the entire subordinate clause Hvis han skulle tilstå occupies the first position in the sentence, the main clause must start immediately with its verb får, pushing the subject vi to the position right after it.
Why is the adverb endelig placed exactly where it is?
In a main clause with inverted word order (where the verb comes before the subject), central adverbs like endelig (finally) must be placed immediately after the subject. Therefore, the sentence is structured as får vi endelig rather than placing the adverb before the verb or at the very end of the sentence.
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