Breakdown of Vi måste bedöva tanden innan lagningen.
vi
we
måste
to have to, must
innan
before
tanden
the tooth
bedöva
to numb
lagningen
the filling
Questions & Answers about Vi måste bedöva tanden innan lagningen.
How does the word lagningen relate to the verb laga?
The noun en lagning is formed by adding the suffix -ning to the verb laga, which means "to repair" or "to fix" (as well as "to cook"). Adding -ning turns an action verb into a noun, so en lagning literally means "a repair" or "a fixing". In a dental context, this translates perfectly to "a filling". In this sentence, it is in the definite form: lagningen (the filling).
Is the verb bedöva related to the word for deaf (döv)?
Yes, exactly! Döv means "deaf", and the prefix be- is often used to build verbs out of adjectives or nouns. So bedöva literally means "to make deaf". In a medical or dental context, making a body part "deaf" to feeling means to anesthetize or numb it.
Could I use före instead of innan in this sentence?
Yes, you can absolutely say före lagningen. Traditionally, före is a preposition used before nouns, while innan is a conjunction used before a full phrase with a verb (like "before we start"). However, in modern everyday Swedish, innan is widely accepted and used before nouns too, just as it is in this sentence.
Why does the sentence use the definite forms tanden and lagningen?
Just like in English, the speaker is talking about a specific tooth and a specific scheduled procedure, so we use the definite forms "the tooth" (tanden) and "the filling" (lagningen). As a quick refresher, remember that en tand is an irregular noun, so if the dentist needed to numb multiple teeth, it would be tänderna (the teeth).
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