Breakdown of Nu tar vi och vädrar huset och skriver listan.
vi
we
och
and
huset
the house
nu
now
skriva
to write
ta
to take
vädra
to air out
listan
the list
Questions & Answers about Nu tar vi och vädrar huset och skriver listan.
What exactly does tar och add to the meaning of this sentence?
This is an example of initiatory pseudo-coordination. Using ta och before another verb implies resolving to do something, taking action, or finally getting something done. It translates well to English phrases like go ahead and or get down to. Without it, Nu vädrar vi huset would just be a simple statement: Now we air out the house.
Why are vädrar and skriver in the present tense instead of the infinitive?
In Swedish pseudo-coordination, the connected verbs must match in tense. Because the first verb tar is in the present tense, the following verbs vädrar and skriver must also be in the present tense. English often uses an infinitive for the second action (go ahead and air out), but Swedish links conjugated verbs together as if saying: Now we take, and we air out.
Why does the subject vi appear between tar and och?
This is the V2 (verb-second) rule in action. Because the sentence starts with the adverb Nu, the first verb tar must take the second position. The subject vi gets inverted and must immediately follow the finite verb. The rest of the pseudo-coordination, starting with och vädrar, simply comes after the subject.
Does the go ahead and feeling of tar och apply to both actions here?
Yes. You can chain multiple verbs together in pseudo-coordination. Because skriver is linked with another och, the initiatory feeling applies to both airing out the house and writing the list. You do not need to repeat tar for the second action.
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