Breakdown of Silvret som mannen inte köpte var dyrt.
vara
to be
inte
not
mannen
the man
köpa
to buy
dyr
expensive
som
who / which / that (relative pronoun)
silvret
the silver
Questions & Answers about Silvret som mannen inte köpte var dyrt.
Why does inte come before the verb köpte?
Because som mannen inte köpte is a subordinate clause (a clause attached to the main sentence). In a normal main clause, inte goes after the verb, but in a subordinate clause, inte always comes before the verb.
Can I leave out the word som here, just like we can drop 'that' in English?
Yes, you can! When som acts as the object of its clause—meaning someone else is the subject doing the action, like mannen in this case—it is optional. You could just say Silvret mannen inte köpte var dyrt.
Why does the adjective dyrt have a -t at the end?
Adjectives have to match the gender of the noun they describe. Since the word for silver is an ett word (ett silver, silvret), the adjective dyr (expensive) takes the neuter -t ending.
It looks weird to have two verbs right next to each other (köpte var). How does that work?
They belong to two different parts of the sentence. köpte is the verb for the descriptive relative clause (som mannen inte köpte), while var is the verb for the main sentence (Silvret... var dyrt). The relative clause just sits inside the main sentence, pushing those two verbs together.
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