Breakdown of Jag smällde i dörren, men det var inte avsikten.
jag
I
vara
to be
det
it (neuter)
inte
not
i
in
dörren
the door
men
but
avsikten
the intention
smälla
to slam
Questions & Answers about Jag smällde i dörren, men det var inte avsikten.
Why do we need the preposition i in smällde i dörren?
In English, you directly "slam the door", but Swedish uses the preposition i here. The expression att smälla i dörren essentially means "to make a bang with the door." If you just said jag smällde dörren, it would sound like you physically hit or struck the door itself.
How do I conjugate smälla?
It is a standard Group 2 verb. The forms you need to know are smälla (infinitive), smäller (present), smällde (past), and smällt (supine).
Could I say min avsikt instead of avsikten?
Yes, saying men det var inte min avsikt (but it was not my intention) is perfectly fine and grammatically correct. However, Swedish frequently uses the definite form (avsikten, "the intention") instead of a possessive pronoun when the context already makes it obvious whose intention is being discussed.
Wait, doesn't this lesson teach that inte goes before the verb?
That rule applies specifically to infinitive phrases (like för att inte störa). The phrase det var inte avsikten is a regular main clause. Even though it follows the conjunction men (but), it stands on its own. Therefore, the standard main clause rule applies: inte comes directly after the active verb (var).
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