Breakdown of Vi hänger en ny lampa över bordet.
vi
we
en
a, an (common)
bordet
the table
ny
new
lampan
the lamp
hänga
to hang
över
over / past (in clock times)
Questions & Answers about Vi hänger en ny lampa över bordet.
Does över mean "over" or "above"?
It means both! In Swedish, över is used when something is positioned higher than something else without touching it, just like "over" or "above" in English.
What is the difference between putting the lamp på bordet and över bordet?
If you put the lamp på bordet (on the table), it is physically resting on the surface. Since we are using över (over or above), the lamp is suspended in the air higher up than the table.
Would I use a different verb if the lamp was already hanging there instead of us hanging it up?
No, you still use hänger. Swedish often has different verbs for placing something versus it resting there (like lägger for "putting down" and ligger for "lying down"). However, hänga is convenient because it works for both the action of hanging something up and the state of it just hanging there.
Why is the word for "new" spelled ny here and not nytt?
Because lampa is an en-word (en lampa). Adjectives must match the gender of the noun they describe, so it stays ny. If you were describing an ett-word, like ett bord (a table), you would use the ett-form: ett nytt bord.
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