Questions & Answers about Vi byggde huset tillsammans.
Why does the verb byggde end in -de?
byggde is the simple past tense of the verb bygga (to build). It belongs to verb Group 2a. To form the past tense for this group, you take the stem of the verb (bygg-) and add -de.
How do I know the stem of the verb is bygg-?
You find the stem of most Swedish verbs by removing the final -a from the infinitive (dictionary) form. For bygga, you drop the -a and are left with bygg-. Because it ends in a voiced consonant (the letter g), it takes the -de ending in the past tense.
Why do we use huset instead of hus here?
hus means "a house", while huset means "the house". Because hus is an ett-word (ett hus), it takes the -et suffix to become definite. The English sentence says "We built the house", so we need the definite form huset.
Does the word tillsammans change because Vi is plural?
No. tillsammans is an adverb meaning "together". Adverbs do not change their endings to match the subject, so it stays exactly the same no matter who or how many people are building the house.