Question 1

Could I use med undantag av instead of bortsett från in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Yes, they are completely interchangeable here. Both mean "apart from" or "with the exception of". If you used the other phrase, it would be Med undantag av ägget var jag tvungen... Fun fact: bortsett is the past participle of se bort, so it literally means "looked away from".

Question 2

Why does the verb var come before the subject jag here?

Accepted Answer

This is the classic V2 (verb-second) rule in action. The introductory phrase Bortsett från ägget takes up the entire first position in the sentence. Therefore, the verb var must come right after it in the second position, forcing the subject jag into the third position.

Question 3

Is there a reason to use var jag tvungen instead of måste jag for "had to"?

Accepted Answer

Both are perfectly fine! måste works in both present and past tense, so måste jag utesluta is correct. However, because måste doesn't change form in the past tense, Swedes often prefer var tvungen (literally "was forced") to make it completely clear that they are talking about the past.

Question 4

Why is it allt protein rather than all protein?

Accepted Answer

The noun protein is an ett-word in Swedish (ett protein). When you want to say "all" of an ett-word, you must add a -t to make it allt so that it agrees with the neuter gender.

Bortsett från ägget var jag tvungen att utesluta allt protein.

Breakdown of Bortsett från ägget var jag tvungen att utesluta allt protein.

Questions & Answers about Bortsett från ägget var jag tvungen att utesluta allt protein.

Learn Bortsett från ägget var jag tvungen att utesluta allt protein and more in Swedish