Breakdown of Det går att överleva, trots att isen är farlig.
vara
to be
farlig
dangerous
trots att
although, in spite of the fact that
det går att
it is possible to
isen
the ice
överleva
to survive
Questions & Answers about Det går att överleva, trots att isen är farlig.
Why do we use trots att here, and could we use även om instead?
Trots att translates to 'despite that' or 'even though' and is used when stating a fact (the ice actually is dangerous). Även om translates to 'even if' and is usually better for hypothetical situations. Because the danger is real in this sentence, trots att is the most precise and natural choice.
Why is it Det går att överleva instead of Det är möjligt att överleva?
While Det är möjligt att is grammatically correct and translates literally to 'It is possible to', the phrase Det går att is a highly common Swedish idiom for expressing that something is doable or possible. Using går att sounds much more natural in everyday speech.
What happens to the word order if I want to make the trots att clause negative?
Because trots att introduces a subordinate clause, Swedish applies the BIFF rule. This means the negative word inte must come before the verb. If you wanted to say 'even though the ice is not dangerous', it would be trots att isen inte är farlig.
Why is the adjective farlig and not farligt in this sentence?
Adjectives in Swedish have to agree with the noun they describe. The word for ice is an en-word (en is, which becomes the definite isen). Therefore, the adjective takes its basic en-word form, farlig. If the noun were an ett-word like vattnet (the water), it would be farligt.
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