Breakdown of De här gamla kläderna är sydda av silke.
vara
to be
kläderna
the clothes
gammal
old
de här
these
av
of, by / from (cause)
sy
to sew
silket
the silk
Questions & Answers about De här gamla kläderna är sydda av silke.
Why is the verb form sydda instead of just sydd?
In this sentence, the past participle is acting like an adjective describing kläderna (the clothes). Since kläderna is plural, the participle must also agree and take the plural form. For Group 3 verbs like att sy (to sew), the plural ending is -dda, making it sydda.
How do we derive the different past participle forms for a Group 3 verb like att sy?
Group 3 verbs have stems ending in a stressed long vowel, like sy, bo, or tro. To build their past participles, you add -dd for singular en-words (like en sydd tröja), -tt for singular ett-words (like ett sytt plagg), and -dda for all plurals (like sydda kläder).
Why do we use the preposition av here to mean 'from'?
When you are talking about the physical material something is constructed out of, Swedish almost always uses the preposition av. While English might say 'made of' or 'sewn from', Swedish relies on av, giving us sydda av silke.
Why does the sentence use De här gamla kläderna instead of just De här gamla kläder?
This is a quick refresher on the double definite rule. When you use pointing words like den här, det där, or de här (these), the noun that follows must be in its definite form. So we must use the definite plural kläderna (the clothes) rather than the indefinite kläder.
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