"He stopped answering the telephone."

Translation: Han slutade svara i telefon.

[Sjodni]

Why is "i" being used as the article "the" here?

[HelenCarlsson]

It's just way we say it in Swedish:
answer the phone - svara i telefon

[Sjodni]

I svara i kommentar! See what I did there? took of the -en!

[Arnauti]

Then maybe we should recommend this thread which says something about how some words can be used in the indefinite in a sort of general sense: https://www.duolingo.com/comment/5824774

[HelenCarlsson]

What :)? Did you think the "i" served as a determiner? Svara telefoni...

[Taldust]

Maybe, because you can think of using the telephone as speaking "into" the telephone. And therefore you also answer "into" the telephone.

[asarnoh]

I have memorised it by using this tip, it really makes sense

[Edwin558763]

can one say.... Han slutade att svara i telefonen?

[devalanteriel]

Yes, if you mean a specific phone.

[David786661]

Kan jag saga
"Han slutade svara telefonen"
?

[devalanteriel]

No, svara requires a preposition whenever transitive, and Swedish uses the indefinite.

[Charles697505]

why not telefonen

[devalanteriel]

It's not really about a specific phone but about the act of answering, so Swedish prefers not to use the definite. Similar constructions make it more obvious - for instance:

• jag jobbar på bank = I work at a bank
• jag jobbar på banken = I work at the bank