Breakdown of Frustrationen ökar av att lyssna på knappvalet.
lyssna på
to listen to
att
to
av
of, by / from (cause)
öka
to increase
frustrationen
the frustration
knappvalet
the keypad selection
Questions & Answers about Frustrationen ökar av att lyssna på knappvalet.
Why does Swedish use att lyssna instead of a word ending in "-ing" like in English?
English uses a gerund (an "-ing" word) after a preposition, like "from listening". Swedish doesn't do this. Whenever a preposition is followed by a verb action, Swedish uses the preposition plus att and the infinitive of the verb. So, av att lyssna translates literally as "from to listen".
Why are there two prepositions (av and på) so close to each other in this sentence?
They belong to different parts of the sentence. Av connects to ökar, showing the cause (increases from). På is tied to lyssna (listen to). The whole phrase att lyssna på knappvalet just acts as the "thing" the frustration increases from.
Is ökar the right verb to use when something increases by itself, without someone doing it?
Yes, ökar works perfectly here. In Swedish, ökar can be both intransitive (the frustration increases on its own) and transitive (someone increases the prices). You don't need a reflexive pronoun or passive form for this.
What exactly does knappvalet mean in this context?
It's a compound noun made of knapp (button) and valet (the choice/selection). In everyday Swedish, ett knappval specifically refers to an automated phone menu where you press numbers to choose a department or option.
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