Breakdown of Hon lovade att fundera på mitt förslag och starta om datorn innan hon skickade nästa fil.
Questions & Answers about Hon lovade att fundera på mitt förslag och starta om datorn innan hon skickade nästa fil.
Why is it lovade att fundera but just och starta without a second att?
Because Swedish, like English, often leaves out the second infinitive marker when two infinitives are coordinated.
- Hon lovade att fundera på mitt förslag och starta om datorn = She promised to think about my proposal and restart the computer.
The att belongs to both infinitives:
- att fundera
- (att) starta
You could repeat att in some contexts, but it is usually unnecessary here.
Why is it fundera på and not just fundera?
Fundera på is the normal expression for think about / consider something.
- fundera = think, reflect
- fundera på något = think about something, consider something
So:
- fundera på mitt förslag = think about my proposal
This is something learners usually just have to memorize as a verb + preposition combination.
Why is it mitt förslag and not min förslag?
Because förslag is a neuter noun in Swedish, an ett-word.
Swedish possessives change to match the gender/number of the noun:
- min = for en-words
- mitt = for ett-words
- mina = for plural nouns
Examples:
- min bok = my book
- mitt förslag = my proposal
- mina böcker = my books
So förslag is ett förslag, therefore mitt förslag.
Why is it datorn and not just dator?
Datorn is the definite singular form: the computer.
- en dator = a computer
- datorn = the computer
In Swedish, the definite article is usually added as a suffix:
- bok → boken
- bil → bilen
- dator → datorn
So starta om datorn means restart the computer, not just restart a computer.
Is starta om one verb?
Yes, it functions as a particle verb, similar to English start up, turn off, or log in.
- starta om = restart / reboot
The particle om adds the idea of again / מחדש—in this context, restart.
Examples:
- Jag måste starta om datorn. = I have to restart the computer.
- Kan du starta om systemet? = Can you restart the system?
So you should learn starta om as a unit.
Why is it innan hon skickade and not innan att hon skickade?
Because innan by itself introduces the subordinate clause. Swedish does not use att after innan in this kind of sentence.
- innan hon skickade nästa fil = before she sent the next file
Compare:
- Jag åt innan jag gick. = I ate before I left.
- Hon ringde innan mötet började. = She called before the meeting started.
So innan already does the job that before does in English.
Why is hon repeated after innan?
Because innan hon skickade nästa fil is a new clause, and clauses normally need their own subject.
Main clause:
- Hon lovade ...
- innan hon skickade nästa fil
Even though it is the same person, Swedish still repeats the subject, just as English does:
- She promised ... before she sent the next file.
You cannot normally omit the second hon here.
Why is it skickade instead of skickat or har skickat?
Skickade is the preterite/simple past form of skicka.
- skicka = send
- skickade = sent
- har skickat = has sent / have sent
- skickat = past participle, used with har/hade
In a past narrative sentence like this, Swedish very often uses the simple past:
- Hon lovade ... innan hon skickade nästa fil.
That is perfectly natural.
If you used hade skickat, it would change the timeline and sound more like before she had sent the next file, which is a different nuance.
Why is it nästa fil and not nästa filen?
After words like nästa, Swedish usually does not add the definite ending to the noun.
So you say:
- nästa fil = the next file
- nästa vecka = next week
- nästa gång = next time
Even though English often uses the in translation, Swedish usually just uses nästa + noun.
So nästa fil is the normal form.
What exactly does och connect here?
It connects the two infinitive phrases:
- att fundera på mitt förslag
- (att) starta om datorn
So the structure is:
- Hon lovade
att fundera på mitt förslag
och starta om datorn
innan hon skickade nästa fil
In other words, she promised to do two things:
- think about the proposal
- restart the computer
Could the sentence have been written with innan att?
No, not in standard Swedish here.
Use:
- innan + clause
- innan hon skickade nästa fil
or
- innan + noun phrase
- innan mötet
- innan nästa fil
But not innan att in this sentence.
What tense is lovade?
Lovade is the preterite/simple past of lova.
- lova = promise
- lovar = promises / is promising
- lovade = promised
- lovat = promised (past participle)
So:
- Hon lovade ... = She promised ...
This sets the whole sentence in the past.
Is the word order normal Swedish word order?
Yes. It is very normal.
The basic structure is:
- Hon = subject
- lovade = finite verb
- att fundera på mitt förslag och starta om datorn = infinitive phrase
- innan hon skickade nästa fil = subordinate time clause
So the sentence follows a very standard pattern:
- subject
- finite verb
- the rest of the sentence
Inside the subordinate clause, the order is also normal:
- hon skickade nästa fil
Does innan hon skickade nästa fil apply to both actions, or only to starta om datorn?
Most naturally, it applies to the whole promised action: she promised to think about the proposal and restart the computer before sending the next file.
Because of the structure, many readers will understand the before-clause as giving the time frame for what she promised to do.
However, in real life, context helps. If needed, Swedish could be rewritten to make the scope clearer. But as written, the sentence is perfectly natural.
Could fundera på mitt förslag also mean something like consider my proposal, not just literally think about it?
Yes. Fundera på often has that broader sense.
Depending on context, it can mean:
- think about
- reflect on
- consider
So Hon lovade att fundera på mitt förslag can sound like:
- She promised to think about my proposal.
- She promised to consider my proposal.
That is a good example of how one Swedish phrase can match several natural English translations.
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