Breakdown of Mötet är framflyttat, och jag kan inte heller närvara.
jag
I
vara
to be
och
and
inte
not
kunna
to be able to, can
mötet
the meeting
heller
either (in negative sentences, e.g. not either)
närvara
to attend
framflyttad
postponed
Questions & Answers about Mötet är framflyttat, och jag kan inte heller närvara.
Why do inte and heller go between kan and närvara?
In a Swedish main clause, sentence adverbs like inte (not) and heller (either) are placed immediately after the finite (first) verb. Here, the finite verb is kan. Since inte heller acts as a pair meaning "not either", they stick together right before the infinitive verb närvara.
Can I put heller at the end of the sentence, like "either" in English?
In standard Swedish, no. While English puts "either" at the end of the clause ("I cannot attend either"), Swedish treats heller as a sentence adverb that belongs in the middle of the sentence, directly after inte. You might hear it placed at the end in casual speech, but jag kan inte heller närvara is the correct structure.
Doesn't framflyttat literally mean "moved forward"? Why does the translation say "postponed"?
This is a classic source of confusion! In the Swedish concept of time, moving something "forward" (fram) means pushing it further ahead into the future—hence, postponed. If you want to say a meeting was moved to an earlier time, you would use tidigarelagt (literally "earlier-laid").
What is the literal meaning of närvara?
It is built from när- (meaning "near" or "close") and the verb vara (to be). It literally translates to "to be present," which is the standard way to say "to attend" in professional or formal contexts.
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