Breakdown of Muren är av betong.
vara
to be
av
of, by / from (cause)
muren
the wall (outdoor, freestanding)
betongen
the concrete
Questions & Answers about Muren är av betong.
Why is there no word for "made" in the Swedish sentence?
In Swedish, you can often just use är av (is of) to mean "is made of". While you could say Muren är gjord av betong (The wall is made of concrete), dropping gjord is extremely common and sounds very natural.
I've learned vägg for "wall" before. What's the difference between vägg and mur?
A vägg is a structural wall of a building, like the walls inside your house. A mur is typically a heavy, standalone outdoor wall made of stone, brick, or concrete, like a garden wall or a castle wall.
Could I use från instead of av here, since they both sometimes translate to "of" or "from"?
No, when stating what material something is made of, you must always use av. The preposition från is used for physical origin or movement, such as traveling from a city or receiving a letter from a friend.
Why isn't there an article before betong, like av en betong?
Just like in English, words for materials and substances are uncountable when describing what something consists of. You use the bare noun betong (concrete) without an article.