Breakdown of Istället för att skrolla kan du välja att koppla ner, gå ut och tillbringa tiden i skogen.
du
you (singular)
och
and
i
in
att
to
kunna
to be able to, can
skogen
the forest
välja
to choose
tiden
the time
gå ut
to go out
istället för
instead of
koppla ner
to disconnect
skrolla
to scroll
tillbringa
to spend
Questions & Answers about Istället för att skrolla kan du välja att koppla ner, gå ut och tillbringa tiden i skogen.
Why is there an att before koppla ner but not before gå ut and tillbringa?
When you have a list of verbs in the infinitive connected by commas or och (and), you only need to use the infinitive marker att before the first verb. The att is simply dropped for the rest of the verbs in the series. It works exactly like English does when we say "to disconnect, go out, and spend".
Why does the sentence use för att skrolla? Doesn't för att usually mean "in order to"?
You are right that för att often means "in order to", but here it belongs to the fixed phrase istället för (instead of). In Swedish, when a verb directly follows a preposition like för, it must be in the infinitive form with att. Where English uses the "-ing" form after prepositions (scrolling), Swedish uses the infinitive.
Why is the word order kan du välja instead of du kan välja?
This is a classic example of the V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire opening phrase Istället för att skrolla acts as one unit taking up the first position in the sentence. Because the verb must come second, the finite verb kan is placed immediately after it, pushing the subject du into the third position.
What is the function of ner in koppla ner?
Koppla ner is a particle verb that specifically means "to disconnect" or "to go offline" from a network or the internet. The verb koppla on its own just means "to connect" or "to link". If you wanted to say "go online", you would use the opposite particle verb, koppla upp.
Could I use spendera instead of tillbringa for spending time in the forest?
It is much better to use tillbringa. In Swedish, tillbringa is the specific verb used for spending time, whereas spendera is traditionally used for spending money. While you might hear some native speakers use spendera for time due to English influence, tillbringa tiden remains the standard and most correct choice.
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