Breakdown of Efter att ha använt hudkrämen sminkade hon sig.
hon
she
ha
to have
att
to
efter
after
använda
to use
sminka sig
to put on makeup
hudkrämen
the skin cream
Questions & Answers about Efter att ha använt hudkrämen sminkade hon sig.
Why do we use efter att ha använt instead of just saying "efter hon använde"?
The phrase efter att ha followed by the supine verb form, like använt, translates to "after having used" or "after using". This perfect infinitive structure is used when the same person performs both actions in the sentence. It acts as a neat shortcut so you don't have to repeat the subject.
Why does the verb sminkade come before the subject hon?
This is the Swedish V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire first part of the sentence, Efter att ha använt hudkrämen, counts as the first block of information. The main verb sminkade must take the second position, which pushes the subject hon to the third position.
What role does the word sig play at the end of the sentence?
The verb for putting on makeup is reflexive in Swedish: att sminka sig (literally "to makeup oneself"). Because the subject is hon, the correct reflexive pronoun is sig. If you left it out, it would sound like she was putting makeup on an unspecified object or person!
How is the word hudkrämen built?
It is a compound word made of hud (skin) and kräm (cream), plus the definite article suffix -en. In Swedish, compound words are written as one single word, and they always take the gender and definite ending of the final word in the combination.
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