Breakdown of Den kloke mannen berättade allt.
mannen
the man
berätta
to tell
allt
everything / all (neuter)
den
the (with en-words)
Questions & Answers about Den kloke mannen berättade allt.
Why is the adjective kloke instead of kloka?
Usually, when an adjective goes with a definite noun, it ends in -a. But when referring to a male person, like mannen (the man), Swedish often uses the special masculine ending -e instead. Both kloke and kloka are grammatically correct here, but -e is very traditional and common for men.
Why do we use both Den and the -en ending on mannen?
This is the Swedish 'double definite' rule. When you describe a definite noun with an adjective, you need a separate word for 'the' (den for en-words) plus the definite ending on the noun itself (-en). It translates literally to 'The wise man-the'.
How can I tell what verb group berättade belongs to?
The base form (infinitive) is att berätta (to tell). Since the base form ends in -a, it belongs to the very common Group 1 of Swedish verbs. Group 1 verbs always form the past tense by simply adding -de to the infinitive, making it berättade.
Why is the word for 'everything' allt here rather than alla?