Breakdown of Kom lidt salt i suppen.
i
in
saltet
the salt
lidt
a little, a bit
suppen
the soup
komme
to put (into), to add (e.g. sugar to coffee)
Questions & Answers about Kom lidt salt i suppen.
Doesn't kom mean "come"? Why does it translate to "add" here?
Yes, the verb komme usually means "to come". However, in Danish, it is the most common and natural verb used for putting or adding ingredients into food or a container. You will see this all the time in everyday situations, like kom mælk i kaffen (put milk in the coffee).
Could I use tilføj (add) or sæt (put) instead of kom in this sentence?
You could use tilføj, which literally means "add", but it sounds a bit formal or like a technical recipe instruction. Kom is much more natural. You cannot use sæt here; sætte is used for placing physical objects in a specific position (like putting a pot on the table), not for dropping ingredients into a mixture.
Why is the preposition i used instead of til?
While English says "add to the soup", Danish focuses on the physical action of putting the ingredient into the liquid itself. Therefore, i (in/into) is the natural choice here.
Why is the word for "a little" here lidt and not lille?
Lidt is used for an uncountable quantity or amount, meaning "a little" or "some" (like salt, water, or time). Lille is an adjective used to describe physical size, meaning "small" (like a small bowl). Since salt is an uncountable mass here, you need lidt.
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