Breakdown of Du skulle slippa limma tranan om du hade vikit rätt.
du
you (singular)
ha
to have
rätt
right
om
if, whether
slippa
to not have to
skulle
would
vika
to fold
limma
to glue
tranan
the crane
Questions & Answers about Du skulle slippa limma tranan om du hade vikit rätt.
Why does this sentence mix skulle slippa in the present with hade vikit in the past?
This is a mixed unreal conditional. The condition happened in the past (you didn't fold it correctly back then, so we use the past perfect hade vikit), but the result applies to the present (you wouldn't have to glue it right now, so we use skulle + present infinitive slippa).
The translation says "wouldn't have to," but there is no inte in the Swedish sentence. Why?
The Swedish verb slippa means to avoid doing or to be spared from doing something. Because the idea of getting out of an obligation is built directly into the verb, you don't need to add a negative word like inte.
Why is there no att before limma?
When slippa is followed by another verb, it almost always takes the bare infinitive without att. Similar to how you use auxiliary verbs like kan or vill, you directly attach the next verb, making it slippa limma.
What kind of verb is vikit?
It is the supine form of vika (to fold). It is a strong verb, meaning it changes its core vowel instead of using regular endings: att vika (infinitive), vek (past tense), and har/hade vikit (supine).
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