Breakdown of Å ena sidan ökar miljöförstöringen, å andra sidan är nyttan stor.
vara
to be
stor
big
öka
to increase
å ena sidan
on the one hand
å andra sidan
on the other hand
miljöförstöringen
the environmental destruction
nyttan
the benefit
Questions & Answers about Å ena sidan ökar miljöförstöringen, å andra sidan är nyttan stor.
Why do the verbs ökar and är come immediately after sidan in both halves of the sentence?
The phrases å ena sidan and å andra sidan count as the first position in their respective clauses. Because Swedish uses V2 (verb-second) word order, the verbs ökar and är must take the second position, placed right before their subjects miljöförstöringen and nyttan.
What does the word å mean here, and could I just use på instead?
å is an old preposition meaning 'on' or 'in' that survives mostly in fixed expressions. While you might hear native speakers occasionally say på ena sidan, you should stick to å ena sidan for this specific phrase, as it is the standard and correct form.
Why is it ena sidan rather than en sidan?
In contrasting expressions, Swedish uses the definite adjectival forms ena (the one) and andra (the other). Both take a definite noun (sidan), making the literal meaning 'on the one side... on the other side'.
Why is miljöförstöringen in the definite form when the English translation just says 'environmental destruction'?
Swedish uses the definite form for general abstract concepts much more often than English does. When talking about environmental destruction in a broad, general sense, Swedish naturally expects the definite form miljöförstöringen.
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