Breakdown of Den vackra spegeln var ett fynd.
vara
to be
ett
a, an (neuter)
spegeln
the mirror
den
the (with en-words)
vacker
beautiful
fyndet
the bargain
Questions & Answers about Den vackra spegeln var ett fynd.
Why is the adjective vackra instead of "vackera"?
The dictionary form of the adjective is vacker. Because it ends in an unstressed -er, it follows a special pattern: when you add the -a ending for the definite form (because of Den), the e before the r drops out. This makes it vackra, which is much easier to pronounce.
Why do we need both Den and the ending on spegeln?
This is the Swedish "double definite" rule. Whenever you put an adjective (like vackra) in front of a definite noun, you must use a freestanding article (Den for an en-word) AND keep the definite ending on the noun itself (-n on spegeln).
The noun spegel also ends in -el. Why didn't it drop an "e" like the adjective did?
The adjective vacker drops its e because we added a vowel ending (-a). To make spegel definite, we only add the consonant -n to get spegeln, so the original e stays. However, if you made the noun plural, it WOULD drop the e and become speglar because of the vowel ending!
Is ett fynd the exact same as "a bargain"?
It translates perfectly to "a bargain" in this context, but its literal meaning is "a find" (from the verb att finna, meaning to find). You can use it for a great price at a flea market, or for an actual physical discovery, like an archaeological find.
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