Breakdown of Man måste respektera gränsen och inte röra ens dagbok.
och
and
inte
not
måste
to have to, must
man
one, you (people in general)
ens
one's
dagboken
the diary
röra
to touch
respektera
to respect
gränsen
the boundary
Questions & Answers about Man måste respektera gränsen och inte röra ens dagbok.
What exactly does ens mean here?
Ens is the possessive form of the generic pronoun man (one). You can translate it as 'one's' or 'a person's'. We use it when talking about something that belongs to people in general.
Since the subject of the sentence is man, why don't we use sin for 'one's'?
The possessive word sin is reflexive, meaning it refers back to the subject of the sentence. If the sentence said inte röra sin dagbok, it would mean 'not touch one's own diary'. By using ens instead, the sentence tells you not to touch someone else's diary.
Why is it ens dagbok and not ens dagboken?
Whenever a noun comes immediately after a possessive word (like min, deras, or ens), it must be in the indefinite form. The possessive word already makes it specific, so we drop the definite -en ending.
Why does inte come before the verb röra?
In a simple main clause, inte (not) usually comes after the verb. However, here röra (to touch) is an infinitive verb connecting back to the earlier modal verb måste (must). When you negate an infinitive verb like this, inte goes right in front of it to mean 'not touch'.
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