Breakdown of I verkligheten är han faktiskt mycket snäll.
vara
to be
han
he
mycket
much / very
i
in
faktiskt
actually (as a matter of fact, in fact)
snäll
kind, nice
verkligheten
the reality
Questions & Answers about I verkligheten är han faktiskt mycket snäll.
How does the -het suffix work in the word verkligheten?
It changes the adjective verklig (real) into the noun verklighet (reality). As a rule, all nouns ending in -het are en-words. Because the sentence says in the reality, we add the standard en-word definite ending -en to get verkligheten.
Why is the verb är placed before the subject han?
This is the Swedish V2 rule in action. The verb must be the second piece of information in a main clause. Because the sentence starts with the prepositional phrase I verkligheten (In reality), the verb är (is) has to come next, pushing han (he) to the third position.
Doesn't faktiskt mean factual rather than actually?
It is related to the word for fact, but as an adverb, faktiskt almost always translates to actually or as a matter of fact. English speakers often want to use the false friend aktuellt for actually, but aktuellt means currently. Faktiskt is the true translation of actually here!
Could I use väldigt instead of mycket to say very kind?
Yes, absolutely. Mycket snäll and väldigt snäll mean the same thing and are highly interchangeable. Väldigt is often slightly more expressive, while mycket is the standard, neutral word for very.
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