Breakdown of Det finns inga tåg klockan halv tolv.
tåget
the train
klockan
the clock
tolv
twelve
det finns
there is, there are
Questions & Answers about Det finns inga tåg klockan halv tolv.
Why does halv tolv mean "half past eleven" instead of half past twelve?
In Swedish, halv (half) looks ahead to the next hour, not back at the current one. So, halv tolv means "halfway to twelve" (11:30). If you wanted to say "half past twelve" (12:30), you would say halv ett (halfway to one).
Is there a Swedish word for "at" missing before klockan halv tolv?
No, Swedish usually drops the preposition when stating a specific clock time. While English says "at half past eleven", Swedish just says klockan halv tolv (literally "the clock half twelve").
Why do we use Det finns to say "There are"?
Det finns is the standard Swedish way to say "there is" or "there are" when stating that something exists. Don't try to translate it word-for-word as "där är" - that only works if you are physically pointing at a specific location, like "there are the trains over there!"
Is tåg singular or plural in this sentence?
It is plural, which we can tell because of the plural word inga (no / not any). Because tåg is an ett word ending in a consonant (ett tåg), its plural form is exactly the same as its singular form. So inga tåg translates to "no trains".