"Skjortan är ren."
Translation:The shirt is clean.
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So does "ren" mean both "reindeer" and "clean"? How would one know if it is being used as an adjective or a noun?
There are some interesting sentences in the course about what happens when a moose takes a bath…
Are you CERTAIN those sentences aren't about a moose kidnapping reindeer?
Yes it means both. Well firstly I guess you wouldn’t talk about your shirt being a reindeer. Secondly you’d need an article if it were a noun.
- Skjortan är ren. = The shirt is clean.
- Skjortan är en ren. = The shirt is a reindeer.
Or made of reindeer hide? Then it'd be "en ren renskjorta" (a clean raindeer shirt). :p
Terrifying? Clothes were oft made of animal hides/furs for centuries; the world over. Unless you are a vegetarian, a reindeer hide shirt should come of no shock. (Unless you are thinking about a certain sleigh-towing 8 tiny reindeer being the source...)
I can't do that tongue roll with the R... It was the curse of my existence in high school when I was learning French. Now I need it for Swedish -_-
The roll in French is in your throat. The roll in Swedish is in the front of your mouth. The roll in your kitchen is in my belly.
You rolled your r’s in a french class? You didn’t use the normal French r (pretty much gargling in the back of the mouth)?
Because the adjective comes after the verb (instead of before the noun) it is treated as indefinite. Confusing, I know but that's the best explanation I could find.
So if it was an ett word should we write rent, or is it always ren when the adjective comes after the verb?
"Rent vatten" "Det rena vattnet" "Vatten är ren" "Vattnet är rent" "Vattnen är rena" So basically if it comes after the noun it keeps it's base form UNLESS it is definite or plural. Also when it is before the noun, rena is used in the definite form. This is what it looks like to me but correct me if I am wrong.
I am slightly confused by 'Rent vatten'. You mention that it keeps its base form unless it is definite or plural - but 'vatten' is neither definite or plural and yet 'rent' isn't in its base form of 'Ren'.
Unless I've interpreted this incorrectly and the 'definite' form of 'ren' is 'rent'? If this is true, does this apply to all adjectives?
It keeps its base form ONLY if it comes after the noun. Before the noun it functions as expected.
Tack för din hjälp Jarrett, I really appreciate it my friend :) I guess it's going to take some time to memorize this
Hej, I have a question. So, I learned recently that the sound ''I'' is represented by ''I'', ''G'' or ''J''. If, for example, someone tells me to write the word ''Varg''(which means wolf), but it's the first time I hear that word, how I am supposed to know if should use ''i'', ''g'' or ''j''. Why ''varg with g and and not j or i, if it's the same sound. Is there like a rule to determine what letter from the three represents the sound ''i''?
I'm not Swedish but I guess that there are no rules in place per se. It's a perhaps a matter of how the language evolved through its history and the different forms it took before being shaped into modern Swedish.
Yet another excellent sentence of discreet Swedish humor (i guess) from the swedish Duolingo team :)
I just realized that the swedish "ren" and german "rein"(not to be confused with the river Rhein) are probably related("rein" means also "clean" but usually the better translation is "pure")
