Efter promenaden är hennes fot också svullen, men knät känns bättre.

Breakdown of Efter promenaden är hennes fot också svullen, men knät känns bättre.

vara
to be
promenaden
the walk
bra
good
men
but
efter
after
också
also
hennes
her
kännas
to feel
knät
the knee
svullen
swollen
foten
the foot
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Questions & Answers about Efter promenaden är hennes fot också svullen, men knät känns bättre.

Why is the word order är hennes fot instead of hennes fot är?

Because Swedish main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must come in the second position.

Here, Efter promenaden is placed first, so the verb är has to come next:

Efter promenaden är hennes fot också svullen.

If you started with the subject instead, you would say:

Hennes fot är också svullen efter promenaden.

Both are possible, but the sentence you have puts Efter promenaden first for emphasis or context.

Why is it promenaden and not just promenad?

Promenaden is the definite form, meaning the walk.

So Efter promenaden means after the walk or after the walk we’re talking about.

If you said efter en promenad, that would mean after a walk, in a more general or indefinite sense.

Why is it hennes fot and not hennes foten?

After possessive words like min, din, hans, hennes, vår, and deras, Swedish uses the basic noun form, not the definite ending.

So you say:

  • hennes fot = her foot
  • min bil = my car
  • deras hus = their house

Not:

  • hennes foten
  • min bilen
  • deras huset

The possessive already makes the noun definite in meaning.

Why does the sentence say knät and not hennes knä?

Swedish often leaves out the possessive with body parts when it is already clear whose body part is meant.

So knät känns bättre literally means the knee feels better, but in context it clearly means her knee feels better.

This is very natural in Swedish. If you wanted to be extra explicit, you could say hennes knä, but it is not necessary here.

Why is the adjective svullen and not svullet or svullna?

Because the adjective agrees with the noun it describes.

Here the noun is fot, which is an en-word and singular, so the predicative adjective is:

svullen

Compare:

  • en fot är svullen
  • ett knä är svullet
  • benen är svullna

Even after verbs like är, Swedish adjectives still show agreement.

What exactly does svullen mean?

Svullen means swollen or puffy because of swelling.

It is commonly used for injuries, inflammation, or irritation:

  • en svullen fot = a swollen foot
  • ett svullet knä = a swollen knee

It usually refers to physical swelling, not just pain.

Why does it say känns bättre instead of är bättre?

Känns bättre means feels better, which focuses on how the knee feels now.

That is often more natural when talking about pain, injury, or symptoms. It suggests an improvement in sensation or condition from the person’s point of view.

  • Knät känns bättre = the knee feels better
  • Knät är bättre = the knee is better

The second one is possible, but känns bättre is often more natural for health-related situations.

Why is it känns with an -s?

The verb here is kännas, which means to feel or to seem/feel like.

Its present tense is känns.

So:

  • kännas = to feel
  • känns = feels

This is not a passive meaning here. It is just the normal form of this verb.

Compare:

  • Jag känner smärta. = I feel pain.
  • Knät känns bättre. = The knee feels better.

In the first sentence, känner is from känna.
In the second, känns is from kännas.

What does också mean here, and why is it placed there?

Också means also or too.

In this sentence, it shows that the foot is swollen in addition to something else already mentioned or understood.

Its placement is natural in Swedish word order:

Efter promenaden är hennes fot också svullen

Here it comes after the subject hennes fot. That sounds normal and neutral.

You can sometimes move också for emphasis, but the version in your sentence is very natural.

Why is it bättre and not something like brare?

Because bra has an irregular comparative.

The forms are:

  • bra = good
  • bättre = better
  • bäst = best

So knät känns bättre uses the correct comparative form: better.

Is men followed by normal word order?

Yes. After men in a new main clause, Swedish uses normal main-clause word order.

So:

..., men knät känns bättre.

Here knät is the subject, and känns is the finite verb.

There is no inversion here because nothing has been moved in front of the verb inside this clause.