Breakdown of Farfar läste gudasagan, men jag förstod den inte.
jag
I
den
it (common)
inte
not
läsa
to read
förstå
to understand
men
but
farfarn
the paternal grandfather
gudasagan
the myth
Questions & Answers about Farfar läste gudasagan, men jag förstod den inte.
How is the compound word gudasagan formed?
It is a combination of gud (god) and sagan (the tale). An -a- is added between them as a linking vowel. This -a- actually comes from an old plural ending, so gudasagan translates literally to the tale of gods.
Why does inte come at the very end instead of right after förstod?
In a main clause, inte normally comes immediately after the verb. However, Swedish has a rule where short object pronouns like den step in front of inte. If you used the full noun, it would be jag förstod inte gudasagan, but with a short pronoun it becomes jag förstod den inte.
Does farfar refer to any grandfather?
No, Swedish has specific words for grandparents based on the side of the family. Farfar is made of far + far and literally means father's father. A maternal grandfather would be morfar (mother's father).
What kind of verb is förstod?
It is the past tense of förstå (to understand). It is an irregular verb that changes its vowel in the past tense, following the exact same pattern as its root verb stå (to stand), which becomes stod.
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