Breakdown of Du måste kontrollera oljan vartannat år.
du
you (singular)
måste
to have to, must
året
the year
kontrollera
to check
varannan
every other (en-words); vartannat (ett-words)
oljan
the oil
Questions & Answers about Du måste kontrollera oljan vartannat år.
Why do we use vartannat here instead of varannan?
Because år (year) is an ett-word (ett år). The word for "every other" has to match the gender of the noun it describes. If you were talking about an en-word like vecka (week), you would use varannan vecka.
Why isn't the noun år in its definite form here?
After words like varje (every) and varannan or vartannat (every other), the noun is always in its indefinite (basic) form in Swedish. So it is just vartannat år.
Why is there no att (to) before the verb kontrollera?
The word måste (must) is a modal verb. Just like in English, it is followed directly by the infinitive form of the main verb without att. You say måste kontrollera (must check), not "must to check".
Why is it oljan (the oil) rather than just olja (oil)?
In contexts like car maintenance, Swedish uses the definite form oljan because you are talking about the specific oil inside that specific engine.
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