Breakdown of Vi besegrade den elake kungen.
vi
we
den
the (with en-words)
kungen
the king
besegra
to defeat
elak
mean
Questions & Answers about Vi besegrade den elake kungen.
Why does the adjective end in "-e" (elake) instead of the usual "-a" (elaka)?
Usually, definite adjectives end in -a (like den stora bilen). However, when describing male people (like a king), Swedish has a special masculine ending -e. So den elake kungen means "the mean king". You can still use -a (den elaka kungen), but -e is very common and traditional for male figures.
Why do we use den when kungen already has the definite "-en" ending?
This is the Swedish "double definite" rule. When you describe a definite noun (kungen = the king) with an adjective, you must also put a separate definite word in front of the adjective. For "en" words, that word is den. It literally translates to "the mean the-king".
What group does the verb besegrade belong to?
It is a Group 1 verb. You can tell because its past tense ends in -ade. The infinitive (dictionary form) is att besegra (to defeat), and the present tense is besegrar.
Does elake only mean "mean"?
The base word elak covers a wide range: it can mean "mean", "unkind", "wicked", or "evil". The exact translation depends on how dramatic the context is. For a fantasy or historical king, "evil" or "wicked" often fits just as well as "mean".
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