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- Topic: Swedish >
- "Det är eftermiddag."
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The correct solution " it is afternoon " i would say "it is the afternoon" i think it is weird because i have never said "it is afternoon " in my life
I am confused, efter means after and middag means dinner, which makes this word seem like it means after dinner
No, that'd be "efter middagen". ;)
"Middag" used to mean noon meal, but the meaning changed over time to the evening meal. But in the word eftermiddag, the original sense of the word is kept to mean afternoon.
How could we say then, "It (the event) is after midday".
"Det är på eftermiddag?"
Det äger rum på eftermiddagen, presumably, where the verb äga rum means "to take place" or "to happen".
I'm really wondering though if a specific subtelty is possible...basically, can we somehow say,
"It is after midday", and keep these as separate words. I.e., not that the event takes place in the afternoon (which it may), but that it is AFTER (and not before) noon.
Literally speaking, absolutely - though is that really idiomatic?
Fun fact, if your are using speech-to-text, it might change "eftermiddag" to EM. Found that out the hard way.
So... By context, does the mean 3PM could mean 3EM? Similar question, how do you say time in the afternoon anyway? (I haven't taken that lesson yet) Does Swedish use the 24 hour clock or the 12 hour AM/PM clock?
EM is just a common abbreviation for eftermiddag, but it's not used with the time.
Swedish uses 24-hour days, but it's common to just use the twelve-hour format when there's no ambiguity.
Why do Swedes say it is afternoon instead of it is the afternoon? I would never say it is afternoon unless this is only a partial sentence. Can we say Det är eftermiddagen?
Sometimes I try and go with what's there and see it as a learning exercise. So in my daily life I would definitely say 'it's the afternoon', but I can still be fine with the words 'it is afternoon'. It could be a description in a wildlife documentary, the start of a story, part of a trans-global telephone conversation, anything!
Det and Den both are an article. Right? Who to know which one to use?
