Breakdown of Det finns ju faktiskt alltid små klibbiga kolor i godisbutiken.
alltid
always
i
in
det finns
there is, there are
små
small (plural)
ju
as you know / of course
faktiskt
actually (as a matter of fact, in fact)
klibbig
sticky
kolan
the toffee
godisbutiken
the candy shop
Questions & Answers about Det finns ju faktiskt alltid små klibbiga kolor i godisbutiken.
Why are the three adverbs ju, faktiskt, and alltid placed in this specific order?
When grouping multiple sentence adverbs in the midfield (right after the finite verb), Swedish follows a natural hierarchy. Adverbs expressing attitude or shared knowledge like ju come first. Adverbs indicating reality or truth like faktiskt come next. Finally, time adverbs like alltid usually appear last in the cluster.
Could we move alltid to the very end of the sentence?
Yes, time adverbs like alltid can grammatically go at the end of the clause. However, placing it in the midfield alongside ju and faktiskt is very common and sounds highly natural here, as it tightly modifies the verb finns before the new information (the toffees) is introduced.
What does the word ju add to the sentence?
The word ju signals that the speaker believes the listener already knows this, or that it is an obvious fact. It softens the statement, translating roughly to "as you know" or "after all." Without it, the sentence would sound like the speaker is revealing brand new information.
Why do we use det finns instead of det är for "there are"?
To say "there is" or "there are" in the sense of existence or availability, Swedish uses det finns. You would only use det är to identify what something is.
Why is the adjective små used here instead of småa to match the plural klibbiga?
The word små is the irregular plural form of liten (small). Unlike regular adjectives that simply add an -a in the plural (like klibbig becoming klibbiga), liten changes completely. You never add an -a to små.
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