Breakdown of Jag undrade om du inte slår in snittblommorna i silkespapper.
jag
I
du
you (singular)
inte
not
i
in
undra
to wonder
om
if, whether
snittblomman
the cut flower
slå in
to wrap
silkespappret
the tissue paper
Questions & Answers about Jag undrade om du inte slår in snittblommorna i silkespapper.
Why use the past tense undrade (was wondering) when the speaker is clearly asking a question right now?
This is a classic example of pragmatic politeness in Swedish. By using the past tense (undrade) instead of the present (undrar), the speaker makes the request sound softer, more hesitant, and less demanding. It works exactly like saying 'I was wondering' in English.
Why is inte placed before the verb slår in instead of after it?
Because the second part of the sentence is a subordinate clause starting with om (if/whether). In Swedish subordinate clauses, sentence adverbs like inte must come before the conjugated verb. This is a great refresher of the 'BIFF' rule (Bisats, Inte Före Finita verbet).
Why does the particle in come right after slår and before the object? Could I put it at the end of the sentence?
No, you cannot split them here. Unlike English, Swedish phrasal verbs (particle verbs) almost always keep the verb and its stressed particle together as a single unit. So slår in stays right next to each other before the object snittblommorna.
Why is the preposition i used for 'in tissue paper'? Would med (with) work too?
When talking about wrapping things, Swedish uses the pattern slå in i (wrap in). While med (with) makes sense in English (e.g., 'wrap with tissue paper'), Swedish treats the paper as the wrapping container the flowers are placed inside, making i the natural choice.
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