Breakdown of Vi måste flytta gitarrförstärkaren, för att inte tala om trumsetet.
måste
must
vi
we
flytta
to move
trumsetet
the drum kit
Questions & Answers about Vi måste flytta gitarrförstärkaren, för att inte tala om trumsetet.
Why is gitarrförstärkaren written as one long word?
Because Swedish forms compounds much more freely than English.
- gitarr = guitar
- förstärkare = amplifier
- gitarrförstärkare = guitar amplifier
English usually writes these as separate words, but Swedish normally joins them into one compound noun. Then the definite ending is added at the end:
- en gitarrförstärkare = a guitar amplifier
- gitarrförstärkaren = the guitar amplifier
This is extremely common in Swedish.
Why does gitarrförstärkaren end in -en?
The -en is the definite article, meaning the.
So:
- en gitarrförstärkare = a guitar amplifier
- gitarrförstärkaren = the guitar amplifier
In Swedish, the is often attached to the end of the noun instead of appearing as a separate word before it.
Why is it trumsetet and not trumseten?
Because trumset is an ett noun, not an en noun.
- ett trumset = a drum kit
- trumsetet = the drum kit
Very roughly:
- en nouns often take definite singular -en
- ett nouns often take definite singular -et
So the endings reflect the noun’s grammatical gender.