Bilen har inte bara rostskador utan också lackskador.

to have

Breakdown of Bilen har inte bara rostskador utan också lackskador.

• bilen: the car
• inte bara: not only
• utan också: but also

Questions & Answers about Bilen har inte bara rostskador utan också lackskador.

Why is it bilen and not en bil?

Bilen means the car, while en bil means a car.

In Swedish, the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun:

• en bil = a car
• bilen = the car

So Bilen har ... means The car has ...

Why is the verb har in second position?

Swedish main clauses normally follow the V2 rule, which means the finite verb comes in the second position.

Here the sentence starts with the subject:

• Bilen = subject
• har = finite verb

So:

• Bilen har inte bara rostskador utan också lackskador.

This is the normal word order for a main clause in Swedish.

What does inte bara ... utan också ... mean grammatically?

This is the Swedish equivalent of not only ... but also ...

So the pattern is:

• inte bara X utan också Y

In this sentence:

• inte bara rostskador = not only rust damage
• utan också lackskador = but also paint damage / damage to the paintwork

It is a very common structure in Swedish.

Why is it utan också here? Could it be something else?