Breakdown of Det finns inget kvar att äta.
att
to
äta
to eat
det finns
there is, there are
inget
nothing / no (neuter)
kvar
left (remaining)
Questions & Answers about Det finns inget kvar att äta.
Why do we use inget here instead of ingen?
When used on its own as a pronoun to mean "nothing" in a general sense, you always use the neuter form inget. If you used ingen here, the sentence would mean "There is nobody left to eat."
Why is the sentence translated with "There is" instead of "It exists"?
The phrase det finns literally translates to "it exists", but it is the standard Swedish way to express "there is" or "there are". If you tried to use det är instead, it would sound like you are pointing to a specific item saying "it is", rather than stating that something exists.
Does the word kvar change depending on what is left over?
No, kvar, which means "left" or "remaining", is an adverb, so it never changes form to match gender or plurals. You will very often see it paired with finns to talk about what is left.
Why do we need att before äta?
Just like in English where we say "nothing left to eat", Swedish uses the infinitive marker att (to) before the basic dictionary form of the verb, äta.
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