Breakdown of Han var så yr att han svimmade bakom bussen.
vara
to be
han
he
bussen
the bus
så
so
att
that
bakom
behind
yr
dizzy
svimma
to faint
Questions & Answers about Han var så yr att han svimmade bakom bussen.
How does the så ... att construction work in this sentence?
It works exactly like "so ... that" in English! You place the adjective or adverb directly after så, followed by att (that) and then the rest of the clause. In this sentence, så yr att translates perfectly to "so dizzy that".
If the subject was plural (e.g., "They were so dizzy"), would the word yr change?
Yes. Even inside this så ... att structure, the adjective must still agree with the subject it describes. If the subject were plural, you would add an -a to the adjective: De var så yra att... (They were so dizzy that...).
What is the word order rule for the clause starting with att?
The word att introduces a subordinate clause (a dependent clause). This means the subject (han) comes first, followed by the verb (svimmade). As a quick refresher: if you needed to use a sentence adverb like inte (not), it would go before the verb in this type of clause: ...att han inte svimmade (...that he didn't faint).
Is yr the only way to say "dizzy" in Swedish?
While yr is very common and completely correct here, you might also hear the word snurrig. It comes from the verb snurra (to spin) and is often used interchangeably with yr to describe feeling dizzy, lightheaded, or a bit confused.
Why do we use bakom here instead of bak for "behind"?
bakom is a preposition used to show location relative to an object, which is why it is followed by a noun here (bakom bussen). bak is normally an adverb meaning "in the back" or "at the back" (like sitting in the back of a car) and isn't followed directly by a noun.
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