Breakdown of Boken gavs ut på svenska.
svenska
Swedish
boken
the book
på
on / at / for (wait for) / in (believe in)
ge ut
to publish
Questions & Answers about Boken gavs ut på svenska.
Why is it gavs instead of just gav?
The -s at the end of gavs creates the passive voice. The verb ge (to give) is an irregular strong verb with the past tense gav. By adding -s, it becomes gavs (was given). Together with ut, it means 'was published'.
Doesn't ge ut literally mean 'give out'? Does it always mean 'publish'?
Yes, its literal translation is 'give out', but ge ut is the standard Swedish phrasal verb for publishing books, magazines, or music. You will very often see the passive form ges ut (is published) or gavs ut (was published) in literary contexts.
Why use the preposition på instead of i for 'in Swedish'?
When talking about speaking, writing, or reading in a specific language, Swedish always uses the preposition på. While English says 'in Swedish', Swedish literally says 'on Swedish' (på svenska).
Why does svenska end in an -a here? Is it an adjective modifying a plural word?
No, in this sentence svenska is a noun, not an adjective. It refers to 'the Swedish language' itself. In Swedish, the nouns for languages almost always end in -a (for example, engelska, franska, tyska).
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