Word
Ledningen kan inte tvinga oss.
Meaning
Management cannot force us.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Ledningen kan inte tvinga oss.
inte
not
kunna
to be able to, can
oss
us
ledningen
the management
Questions & Answers about Ledningen kan inte tvinga oss.
Why does inte go between kan and tvinga?
In a Swedish main clause, the first verb (kan) takes the second position. The negation word (inte) comes immediately after that first, conjugated verb. The second verb, which is the main action (tvinga), gets pushed until after inte.
Why does the sentence use the infinitive tvinga instead of the present tense tvingar?
Because it follows the auxiliary (helping) verb kan (can). Just like in English, when you use a helping verb, the main verb that follows must be in the infinitive form. You say 'can force', not 'can forces', so Swedish uses kan tvinga.
Where does the object oss (us) belong in a sentence with two verbs?
The object (oss) usually goes at the end of the clause. The strict order for this sentence type is: Subject (Ledningen) + Auxiliary verb (kan) + Negation (inte) + Main verb (tvinga) + Object (oss).
Why does the Swedish sentence use the definite form ledningen when the English translation just says 'Management'?
In English, we often drop the word 'the' when talking about 'Management' as an abstract group. Swedish is more literal: because you are talking about the specific management of a certain company or group, you must use the definite ending -en.