Breakdown of Forskaren arbetar inte idag på grund av sjukdomen.
idag
today
inte
not
forskaren
the researcher
på grund av
because of
Questions & Answers about Forskaren arbetar inte idag på grund av sjukdomen.
Why use på grund av here instead of därför att or eftersom?
På grund av is a compound preposition that translates to "because of" or "due to". It must be followed directly by a noun phrase, like sjukdomen (the disease) in this sentence. Words like därför att or eftersom mean "because" and require a full clause with a subject and a verb (for example, eftersom hen är sjuk - because they are sick).
Could I use tack vare in this sentence instead?
Grammatically you could, but it would change the meaning and sound very strange! Tack vare means "thanks to" and is strictly used for positive outcomes. You would only say tack vare sjukdomen if catching the disease somehow resulted in a miracle or a great benefit. Since missing work is usually seen as a negative or neutral event, på grund av is the correct choice.
Why is inte placed after the verb arbetar?
This is a main clause, so the standard V2 (verb-second) rule applies: the main verb (arbetar) takes the second position, and the "sentence adverb" (inte) comes right after it. You might be remembering the special rule for subordinate (dependent) clauses, where inte comes before the verb.
How do we get the definite form forskaren from the base word?