Breakdown of Speglarna på catwalken var lika eleganta som modellerna.
vara
to be
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
spegeln
the mirror
lika
equally / as
Questions & Answers about Speglarna på catwalken var lika eleganta som modellerna.
This lesson is about stylistic fronting of predicative adjectives. How could we rewrite this sentence to use that structure?
You can move the entire comparative phrase to the front of the sentence for narrative emphasis: Lika eleganta som modellerna var speglarna på catwalken. This gives the sentence a dramatic, literary feel. Notice that because of the V2 rule, the verb var must immediately follow the fronted adjective phrase.
Why is the adjective eleganta in the plural form here?
In Swedish, predicative adjectives (adjectives that come after a verb like to be) must still agree with the subject they describe. Since the subject speglarna (the mirrors) is plural, the adjective must take the plural -a ending, even though they are separated by the verb.
Why is the preposition på used for the catwalk?
A catwalk is treated as a platform or an elevated surface. Swedish consistently uses på for surfaces you stand on, just like you would say på scenen (on the stage) or på golvet (on the floor).
How does the English loanword catwalk get its definite form here?
When English nouns become common in Swedish, they are assigned a gender (most often as en-words) and take standard Swedish endings. Here, it behaves exactly like a native Swedish en-word, taking the standard -en suffix to become catwalken (the catwalk).