Breakdown of Företagaren har använt sitt eget kapital.
ha
to have
sin
his/her/its/their own (en-word)
använda
to use
företagaren
the entrepreneur
egen
own
kapitalet
the capital (finance)
Questions & Answers about Företagaren har använt sitt eget kapital.
Why is it eget here? Shouldn't adjectives after a possessive pronoun end in -a?
Normally, yes! Adjectives usually take the definite form (ending in -a) after a possessive pronoun. However, egen (own) is a famous exception. It ignores the possessive rule and acts like an indefinite adjective, changing only to match the noun's gender and number. Since kapital is an ett-word, egen becomes eget.
Why use sitt instead of hans or hennes?
Sitt is a reflexive possessive pronoun, which means it points back to the subject of the same sentence (Företagaren). If you used hans (his) or hennes (her), it would mean the entrepreneur used a completely different person's capital.
Why is sitt an ett-word form when Företagaren is an en-word?
Possessive pronouns always match the gender and number of the thing being owned, not the owner! Since the owned thing is kapital (an ett-word), the pronoun becomes sitt to match it, regardless of the entrepreneur's grammatical gender.
Why is kapital in the indefinite form here?
In Swedish, a noun that comes directly after a possessive pronoun (like sitt) must be in the indefinite form. It is a strict rule, so we say sitt eget kapital, never sitt eget kapitalet.
Learn Företagaren har använt sitt eget kapital and more in Swedish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free