"Ett brev"
Translation:A letter
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That's what it sounds like to me too. I actually typed "brem" and it counted correct but as a typo haha.
I can't understand the TTS ending of 'brev'. To me it sounds like it's saying, 'brea'. Am I hearing it correctly or do you pronounce the 'V'?
It's because Swedish speakers colloquially drop 'v' sounds quickly and quitely. 'Vad'(what) for example has only enough v sound in it to tell it starts with one.
Origin: From Old Norse 'bréf', from Latin 'breve' (scriptum) (source: Wiktionary) Cognates in German and English 'Brief'
Is the "b" here supposed to sound like a "d", or is it an issue with the audio?
I got this wrong too because it sounded like "drev". I knew it was wrong, but didn't know what else to type. :(
Sounded like drer (like brer rabbit, but initial 'd') to me; couldn't guess what it was supposed to be
En is used for words that are common gender. Ett is used for words that are neuter gender. You won't be able to tell which is used for a word, just by looking at the word. That's why, when you learn new words, you also have to memorize the article associated to it. For example:
En tidning - A newspaper.
Ett brev - A letter.
As you can see, the two words en and ett, mean exactly the same thing, so that means you have to memorize which words use en and which ones use ett. You can also find more info under the Tips and Notes of Basics 1. Hope that helped!
The word is one syllable, but we should be aware that, according to this video on the Swedish vowels https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzYArZVTD4s&t=2m12s, it is common for the Swedish long e to end in a weak schwa /ə/.
Does this refer to a letter written to someone, or a letter of the alphabet? I'm assuming the former :)
I have question. For "A book" it's "En bok". Then again here, for "A letter" it's "Ett brev"? I know there is a difference between "ett" and "en". But what's the difference between "bok" and "brev" that for one "en" is used and for the other "ett". Please someone explain logically. I am confused
In a lot of languages nouns are given genders, like in French 'a' translates to 'un' for masculine and 'une' for feminine nouns (un stylo: a pen, versus une bouteille: a bottle). It's the same idea with 'en' and 'ett'. Unfortunately you just have to learn which words have which pronouns! Hope this makes sense.
"en bok= a book". Why a book = en bok and no ett bok. the "bok" does not considered neutral, and if it does not, there is a basic rule for what is considered neutral or not?
There is no general rule, no. You cannot tell by the word which it will be, you just need to pay attention and remember which are used for which words.
It's from Latin breve, meaning "written note", which in turn is from Latin brevis, meaning "short". The English word "brief" is a cognate.
The pronunciation sucks with this one. I should know, I've been learning Swedish for 6 years
The pronunciation is perfectly fine. I've spoken native Swedish for over 30 years.
The v sound at the end of this word is so unclear. I checked a few other sources online and they all pronounce the “v” sound at the end of the word (this sounds more like a 2 syllable word with an r or n at the end). I wish I could tell if this is just a poor robo-voice issue or a genuine way to renounce the word.