Breakdown of Visst blir det kallt på natten, men en avskild skog är charmig.
vara
to be
en
a, an (common)
kall
cold
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
skogen
the forest
men
but
bli
to become
natten
the night
det
there (dummy subject)
visst
certainly
avskild
secluded
charmig
charming
Questions & Answers about Visst blir det kallt på natten, men en avskild skog är charmig.
How does visst work in this sentence? Doesn't it usually mean "certainly"?
It can mean "certainly", but in the visst [X], men [Y] structure it acts as a concession, meaning "admittedly" or "sure". It acknowledges a drawback before introducing the positive counterpoint: "Sure, it gets cold..., but..."
Why is the word order visst blir det instead of visst det blir?
Why do we use the verb blir instead of är here?
While you could say är (is), using blir (becomes/gets) emphasizes the transition. It implies that as the day ends, the temperature drops and it gets cold.
Why is natten in the definite form in the phrase på natten?
When talking about parts of the day in a general or habitual sense (like "at night" or "during the night"), Swedish pairs the preposition på with the definite form of the noun.
What type of word is avskild?
It is a past participle of the verb att avskilja (to separate/isolate), used here as an adjective meaning "secluded" or "remote". Because it modifies the en-word skog, it stays in the base form avskild (it would become avskilt if it were describing an ett-word).
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