Breakdown of Idag är tidningen tunnare än boken.
vara
to be
boken
the book
idag
today
tidningen
the newspaper
tunn
thin
än
than
Questions & Answers about Idag är tidningen tunnare än boken.
How do we form the word for "thinner" from the base adjective?
The base adjective for "thin" is tunn. To make it comparative ("thinner"), you simply add the regular ending -are, giving us tunnare. Notice that unlike in English where we have to double the 'n' when going from 'thin' to 'thinner', the Swedish base word already has a double 'n', so we just attach the ending.
If the noun was an ett-word or plural, would tunnare change?
No! One of the best things about Swedish comparative adjectives ending in -are is that they never change. They don't have to agree with gender or number. It is always tunnare, whether you are describing an en-word, an ett-word, or multiple things.
Why is it är tidningen instead of tidningen är?
This is a great example of the Swedish V2 (verb-second) rule. Since the sentence starts with the time word Idag (Today) in the first position, the verb är must come exactly second. This forces the subject tidningen (the newspaper) to swap places and come after the verb.
What word do we use for "than" in a comparison?
The word is än. You will use än to connect the two things being compared whenever you use a comparative adjective like tunnare. Be careful not to mix it up in your writing with the article en (a/an) — they sound almost identical, but än is the one used for comparisons!
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