Breakdown of Vi tar det åttonde tåget.
vi
we
ta
to take
tåget
the train
det
the (with ett-words)
åttonde
eighth
Questions & Answers about Vi tar det åttonde tåget.
Why does the sentence use both det and tåget? Doesn't that mean "the eighth the train"?
Yes, it literally translates to "the eighth the train"! In Swedish, when you use an adjective (like åttonde) with a definite noun, you must use a separate "the" word before the adjective (det for "ett" words) AND keep the definite ending on the noun (-et). This is called "double definiteness."
Does the word for "eighth" (åttonde) change its ending depending on if the word is an "en" or "ett" word?
No. Ordinal numbers (first, second, third, etc.) like åttonde act as adjectives, but they are special because their endings do not change. You use åttonde for both "ett" words like tåg and "en" words like bil (car).
The translation says "are taking", but tar just means "take", right?
In Swedish, there is no separate "am/are doing" form. The present tense tar can mean both "take" and "are taking" depending on the context.
How can I tell from this sentence that tåg (train) is an "ett" word?
You get two clues here! First, the separate "the" word used before the adjective is det (instead of den). Second, the noun has the definite ending -et (tåget). Both show that tåg is an "ett" word.
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