Breakdown of Kan du låta bli att kommentera min ovana?
du
you (singular)
att
to
kunna
to be able to, can
min
my (min/mitt/mina)
låta bli
to refrain
kommentera
to comment
ovanan
the bad habit
Questions & Answers about Kan du låta bli att kommentera min ovana?
What does låta bli att literally mean, and how is it used here?
Literally, it translates to "let be to". In Swedish, låta bli att is a fixed expression meaning "to refrain from" or "to stop yourself from" doing something. You simply place the verb in its infinitive form (kommentera) directly after att.
Why is there no Swedish word for "on" after kommentera?
In English, we say "comment on something", but the Swedish verb kommentera does not use a preposition. It takes a direct object right after it. You simply say kommentera min ovana (literally "comment my bad habit"). Adding på (on) here is a common mistake for English speakers.
How is the word ovana built?
It comes from the noun en vana, which means "a habit". When you add the prefix o- (which works like "un-" or "in-" in English to create a negative meaning), it becomes en ovana—a bad habit.
Why do we use min instead of mitt before ovana?
Because the root word vana is an en-word (en vana), the negative form ovana is also an en-word. Therefore, the possessive word for "my" must take the matching en-word form, which is min.
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