Breakdown of Hans skämt var dock ett taktlöst övertramp.
vara
to be
ett
a, an (neuter)
hans
his
skämtet
the joke
Questions & Answers about Hans skämt var dock ett taktlöst övertramp.
How does the word övertramp literally translate, and what is its nuance here?
It literally translates to an "over-step" (from över + tramp). In sports, it refers to stepping over a foul line. Figuratively, as used in this sentence, it means a social blunder, transgression, or overstepping an acceptable social boundary.
Why is dock placed after the verb var? Could it go at the beginning of the sentence?
Dock (however) acts as a sentence adverb here. In a standard main clause, sentence adverbs go immediately after the first verb to maintain the V2 (verb-second) rule. You can put dock at the start of the sentence, but you must then invert the subject and verb to keep the verb in the second position: Dock var hans skämt...
The word skämt looks the same in singular and plural. How do we know it means "joke" and not "jokes" here?
You can deduce this by looking at the rest of the sentence! The joke is described as ett taktlöst övertramp (a singular transgression). If skämt were plural here, the end of the sentence would also be plural to match: ...var dock taktlösa övertramp.
Why does the adjective taktlöst end with a -t?