Breakdown of Barnen vill inte släcka lampan i sovrummet eftersom de är lite rädda.
Questions & Answers about Barnen vill inte släcka lampan i sovrummet eftersom de är lite rädda.
Barn means children (indefinite plural).
Barnen means the children (definite plural).
In Swedish, the definite article is usually added as an ending:
- barn = child / children
- barnet = the child
- barnen = the children
Here we are talking about specific children (we know which ones), so Swedish uses the definite form barnen.
In a main clause, Swedish normally puts the finite verb in second position and inte after it.
Word order:
- Subject: Barnen
- Finite verb: vill
- Negation: inte
- Infinitive: släcka
So: Barnen vill inte släcka …
Barnen inte vill släcka or Barnen vill släcka inte are wrong in standard Swedish word order.
Vill inte släcka literally means do not want to turn off / don’t want to extinguish.
- Barnen vill inte släcka lampan = The children don’t want to turn off the lamp.
It describes their willingness, not whether they actually do it.
If you said:
- Barnen släcker inte lampan = The children are not turning off the lamp (a description of what they do / don’t do, without mentioning their will).
Släcka is the normal verb for putting out or turning off lights, candles, fires, etc.
- släcka lampan = turn off the lamp (extinguish the light)
- släcka ljuset = turn off the light
You can sometimes hear stänga av lampan, and it is understandable, but släcka lampan is more idiomatic for ordinary lamps and lights.
En lampa means a lamp (indefinite).
Lampan means the lamp (definite).
We are clearly talking about a specific, known lamp (the one in the bedroom), so Swedish uses the definite form lampan.
Pattern:
- en lampa = a lamp
- lampan = the lamp
For being inside a room, Swedish uses i (in):
- i sovrummet = in the bedroom
- i köket = in the kitchen
- i vardagsrummet = in the living room
På is used with many places, but not with rooms in this sense.
På sovrummet is wrong in standard Swedish when you mean “in the bedroom” as a physical room.
Again, this is the definite form:
- ett sovrum = a bedroom
- sovrummet = the bedroom
Swedish often uses the definite form after prepositions when talking about a specific place:
- i sovrummet = in the bedroom
- på bordet = on the table
- under stolen = under the chair
Since we clearly mean a particular bedroom, sovrummet is used.
In subordinate clauses (introduced by words like eftersom, att, om), Swedish does not use the regular “verb in second place” rule.
Instead, the normal order is:
- Subordinator: eftersom
- Subject: de
- Verb: är
So:
- eftersom de är lite rädda = because they are a bit scared
Eftersom är de lite rädda is wrong; you keep subject–verb order in subordinate clauses.
De here means they and refers back to barnen (the children).
Pronunciation:
- In speech, de is almost always pronounced “dom”.
- In writing, you use de (subject form) and dem (object form), even though both are usually pronounced “dom” in modern spoken Swedish.
So you say something like:
- Barnen vill inte släcka lampan i sovrummet eftersom dom är lite rädda.
but you write de in this sentence.
Rädd is the basic form of the adjective scared, afraid.
Adjectives in Swedish agree with number and sometimes gender.
For plural subjects:
- Barnet är rädd. = The child is scared.
- Barnen är rädda. = The children are scared.
Since barnen is plural, the adjective takes the plural form rädda.
Lite here is an adverb meaning a little / a bit, modifying the adjective rädda:
- lite rädda = a bit scared / a little scared
Liten is an adjective meaning small/little (in size) and doesn’t fit here. Compare:
- lite trött = a bit tired
- lite hungrig = a little hungry
So lite is used to weaken/soften the adjective.
You can sometimes change it, but there are nuances:
- eftersom = because (neutral, very common)
- därför att = because (often used after därför: De vill inte släcka lampan. Därför att de är lite rädda.)
- för att can mean in order to (purpose), and using it as because is more informal and not always accepted in careful writing.
In your sentence, eftersom is the safest and most standard choice:
- Barnen vill inte släcka lampan i sovrummet eftersom de är lite rädda.
You could say … därför att de är lite rädda, but eftersom is more neutral and common here.
No, that word order is incorrect in standard Swedish.
In a main clause with a modal verb like vill, the normal order is:
- Subject: Barnen
- Finite verb: vill
- inte
- Infinitive verb: släcka
So only Barnen vill inte släcka lampan … is correct.
Putting inte after släcka would sound very wrong.
Grammatically, sovrummets lampa (the bedroom’s lamp) is possible, but it sounds formal or unnatural in everyday Swedish.
The usual, natural way is:
- lampan i sovrummet = the lamp in the bedroom
Swedish prefers [noun] + preposition phrase (lampan i sovrummet) over possessive constructions like sovrummets lampa in this kind of context.