Breakdown of Ju lägre efterfrågan är, desto större blir överskottet.
vara
to be
stor
big
bli
to become
låg
low
ju
as you know / of course
efterfrågan
the demand
desto
the (in proportional comparisons)
överskottet
the surplus
Questions & Answers about Ju lägre efterfrågan är, desto större blir överskottet.
Why is the word order different in the two halves of the sentence?
The ju half acts as a subordinate clause, so it uses straight word order after the comparative: subject (efterfrågan) + verb (är). The desto half is the main clause. Because it starts with desto större rather than the subject, the verb must come next to satisfy the V2 (verb-second) rule. That is why the verb blir comes before the subject överskottet.
Can I use 'desto' in both halves, like 'desto lägre... desto större'?
No, in Swedish you must start with ju for the condition (the cause) and use desto or dess for the result. Using desto twice is a common mistake among English speakers, but it is grammatically incorrect in Swedish.
Why does the second part use 'blir' instead of 'är'?
While English often says 'the bigger the surplus is', Swedish strongly prefers blir (becomes) here to emphasize the change or result caused by the dropping demand. You could grammatically use är, but blir sounds much more natural when describing a developing consequence.
What are the base forms of 'lägre' and 'större'?
They are the comparative forms of låg (low) and stor (big/large). Both of these adjectives are irregular and change their vowels in the comparative form, which is a good pattern to review.
Is 'efterfrågan' in the definite form here?
Yes. Efterfrågan (the demand) is a slightly unusual en-word. It is formed from a verb and already includes the definite ending -n. You cannot add an extra definite suffix to it, so it looks the same whether you mean 'demand' in general or 'the demand'.
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