Breakdown of Vi ser folkmassan passera på torget.
vi
we
se
to see
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
torget
the square
folkmassan
the crowd
passera
to pass by
Questions & Answers about Vi ser folkmassan passera på torget.
Why is there no att (to) before passera?
Because ser (see) is a verb of perception (a verb relating to the senses, like seeing or hearing). Just like in English ("We see the crowd pass", not "to pass"), Swedish uses the bare infinitive passera without att after a perception verb and its object.
In English, we often say "We see the crowd passing". Can I use a present participle like passerande in Swedish?
You shouldn't. While English frequently uses "-ing" words after verbs of perception, Swedish strongly prefers the simple infinitive. So, "We see the crowd passing" and "We see the crowd pass" both translate to Vi ser folkmassan passera.
How do you break down the word folkmassan?
It is a compound noun made of folk (people) and massa (mass or crowd). The -n at the end is the definite article, making it folkmassan (the crowd). When combining words in Swedish, only the final part of the compound takes the ending to show plural or definite forms.
Why do we use the preposition på with torget?
In Swedish, you generally use på (on) for open, public surfaces and places like a square (ett torg), a street (en gata), or a courtyard (en gård). You would typically use i (in) for three-dimensional, enclosed spaces like buildings or forests.
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