Questions & Answers about Både dörren och fönstret är stängda.
Why does the word for "closed" end in -a (stängda)?
Stängda is a past participle being used as an adjective. Because it describes two things together (dörren and fönstret), it has to be in the plural form. When used as adjectives, past participles take an -a ending for plural subjects.
Dörren is an en-word and fönstret is an ett-word. Does this mix of genders affect the ending of stängda?
Not at all! Whenever you have a plural subject (more than one thing), the gender of the individual words no longer matters. The past participle will always take the plural -a ending, whether it's describing two en-words, two ett-words, or a mix of both.
What verb does stängda come from?
It comes from the verb att stänga (to close). When you want to describe something as "closed," you use its past participle forms: stängd (for an en-word), stängt (for an ett-word), or stängda (for plurals).
How do you use både in this sentence?
Både means "both", and it acts as a pair with och (and). Together, they form the fixed phrase både [X] och [Y], which translates exactly to "both [X] and [Y]" in English.