Breakdown of Vi tycker att situationen är otroligt orättvis.
vara
to be
vi
we
otrolig
incredible
att
that
tycka
to think (have an opinion)
situationen
the situation
orättvis
unfair
Questions & Answers about Vi tycker att situationen är otroligt orättvis.
How does the prefix o- change the meaning of otroligt and orättvis in this sentence?
The prefix o- acts just like "un-", "in-", or "im-" in English, giving the base word the opposite meaning. Here, trolig (likely/believable) becomes otrolig (unbelievable/incredible), and rättvis (fair) becomes orättvis (unfair).
Why is there a -t at the end of otroligt but not orättvis?
Otroligt is acting as an adverb here, describing the adjective orättvis (it tells us how unfair the situation is). In Swedish, you usually add a -t to an adjective to turn it into an adverb. Orättvis, on the other hand, is an adjective describing situationen (an en-word), so it takes no ending and stays in its base form.
Can I attach the o- prefix to any Swedish adjective to make it negative?
Not always. Just like in English (where we say "bad" instead of "ungood"), you can't attach o- to every single word. However, it is an extremely common way to build words in Swedish! It is best to memorize words like orättvis and otrolig as set vocabulary items.
Why use tycker for "think" here instead of tror or tänker?
Tycker is specifically used for expressing personal opinions and subjective feelings, which fits perfectly here because you are judging the situation as unfair. As a quick reminder: use tror for beliefs or facts you aren't completely sure of, and tänker for the active process of thinking in your head.
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