Breakdown of Även om förrådet är litet och graderna sjunker, lever hoppet.
vara
to be
och
and
liten
small
leva
to live (be alive)
även om
even if, even though
sjunka
to sink
graden
the degree
förrådet
the supply
hoppet
the hope
Questions & Answers about Även om förrådet är litet och graderna sjunker, lever hoppet.
Why does the second part of the sentence start with the verb lever instead of the subject hoppet?
This is because of the V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire subordinate clause (Även om förrådet är litet och graderna sjunker) acts as the first grammatical block of the sentence. To keep the verb in the second position, the main clause must immediately start with the verb lever, followed by the subject hoppet.
Does the word och start a new main clause, or is graderna sjunker still part of the Även om clause?
It is still part of the subordinate clause. The conjunction och connects the two situations (the supply being small and the degrees dropping) under the same Även om (even if) umbrella. Both parts act together as a single block before the main clause begins.
If I wanted to say 'Even if the supply is NOT small', where would inte go in this sentence?
Because Även om starts a subordinate clause, the Swedish rule for word order says that sentence adverbs like inte must come before the first verb. This is often taught as the BIFF rule. You would write: Även om förrådet inte är litet...
Why is the adjective litet used here instead of liten?
The adjective describes the noun förrådet (the supply). Because förråd is an ett word (ett förråd), any adjective describing it must take the matching t-form, which is litet.
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