Breakdown of Vi hjälper henne att vägleda sina anställda.
vi
we
hjälpa
to help
att
to
henne
her
sina
his/her/its/their own (plural)
anställd
employed
vägleda
to guide
Questions & Answers about Vi hjälper henne att vägleda sina anställda.
Why does this sentence use sina instead of hennes if the main subject is vi?
Because henne is the logical subject of the infinitive clause. Even though vi (we) is the grammatical subject of the main sentence, it is henne (her) who is actually doing the guiding (att vägleda). When a third-person object performs the action in an attached infinitive clause, we use sin/sitt/sina to show that the thing being acted upon belongs to that logical subject.
What would it mean if the sentence said att vägleda hennes anställda instead?
It would mean that we are helping her guide someone else's employees (some other woman's). Using sina makes it clear that she is guiding her own employees.
Why does the word anställda end in -a here?
The word anställda is a substantivized adjective (a past participle used as a noun) meaning 'employees'. After a possessive word like sina, adjectives must take their definite/plural form, which almost always ends in -a.
What is the difference between leda and vägleda?
Leda simply means 'to lead' or 'to direct', while vägleda (literally 'way-lead') means 'to guide', 'to mentor', or 'to give direction'. It implies offering advice and support rather than just giving orders as a boss.
Is the att strictly necessary before vägleda?
Yes. While English often drops the 'to' after the verb 'help' (as in 'help her guide'), Swedish keeps the infinitive marker att after hjälpa when it introduces a new verb phrase.
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