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Visserligen är brädan billig, men själva greppet är fantastiskt.

Visserligen är brädan billig, men själva greppet är fantastiskt.
Granted, the board is cheap, but the actual grip is fantastic.
From Lesson 425:Emphasizing the noun (själva)·Swedish

Questions & Answers about Visserligen är brädan billig, men själva greppet är fantastiskt.

Why do we use själva greppet instead of självt greppet since it is an ett word?
When used as an emphatic determiner meaning "the actual" or "the thing itself", you always use the fixed form själva. It is placed directly before a definite noun like greppet and does not change to match gender or number.
Why is the verb är placed before brädan in the first clause?
Because Swedish is a V2 (verb-second) language. The adverb Visserligen takes up the first position in the sentence, so the verb är must take the second position, pushing the subject brädan to the third.
Is Visserligen always followed by a contrasting word like men?
Not strictly always, but very often! Visserligen means "admittedly" or "granted". It sets up a concession, so it is highly natural to follow it with a contrasting conjunction like men (but) or fast (though) in the next clause to make your main point.
Why does fantastiskt end in an -t in this sentence?
Because it describes greppet, which is an ett word (ett grepp). When an adjective comes after the verb "to be" to describe the subject, it must still agree with the gender of that noun, so it takes the neuter -t ending.

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