Danish 11

Grammar Summary

1. Adjectives & Adverbs

Adjective Agreement (kongruens)

Adjectives must agree with the noun they describe:

Key adjectives from this passage:

Exam tip: Adjectives ending in -et/-eret (irriteret, interesseret) do not add -t in the neuter form.

Adverbs

Most adverbs are formed from the adjective’s neuter form (adj. + -t):

• tidlig → tidligt (early) — Sofie vil gerne tidligt i seng
• hurtig → hurtigt (quickly)
• pludselig → pludselig (suddenly) — invariable

Common fixed adverbs (no inflection):

Comparative & Superlative

Exam tip: Use mere/mest for adjectives that are hard to add -ere/-est to (3+ syllables, -eret endings).

Word Order of Adverbs (Critical for Exam!)

• Main clause: adverb comes after the finite verb
  • Hun vil gerne komme til festen.
  • Det tager kun et kvarter.
• Subordinate clause (after at, fordi, selvom, fordi…): adverb comes before the finite verb
  • …at hun ikke plejer at holde fest
  • …selvom festen allerede er slut

2. Verbs — Forms & Tenses

Infinitive

Always used with at: at betale, at spare, at cykle, at sove, at falde

After modal verbs, no “at”: hun skal op, hun kan høre, hun vil komme

Present Tense (nutid)

Infinitive stem + -r (for all persons):

• betale → betaler, spare → sparer, tage → tager, bo → bor

Past Tense (datid)

Two weak verb groups + strong (irregular) verbs:

Key verbs from this passage:

Perfect Tense: “har” vs. “er”

• har + past participle — most verbs: hun har boet, hun har betalt
• er + past participle — motion / change of state verbs: hun er flyttet, hun er kommet, festen er slut

Exam tip: Memorize “er”-verbs: flytte, komme, gå, rejse, falde, ankomme, blive.

3. Modal Verbs

Structure

Modal verb + bare infinitive (no “at”):

• hun skal op (idiomatic: skal op = has to get up)
• hun vil komme til festen
• hun kan høre musikken

Key Fixed Expressions

4. Prepositions

Common Prepositions

Fixed Prepositional Phrases (Must-Know)

Sofie på 22 år er frisør og arbejder i en salon i Aarhus. For en måned siden flyttede hun fra et område udenfor Aarhus til en lejlighed, som ligger i centrum af byen.

frisør = hairdresser

område = area

udenfor = outside

uden = without

Sofie is 22 years old and works as a hairdresser in a salon in Aarhus. A month ago, she moved from an area outside of Aarhus to an apartment located in the city center.

• why “som” is used here?

In this sentence, “som” is used as a relative pronoun to introduce a relative clause that provides additional information about the apartment. The clause “som ligger i centrum af byen” (which is located in the city center) describes the apartment and specifies its location.

Sofie betaler lidt mere i husleje, end hun gjorde før. Alligevel er hun glad for, at hun er flyttet. Før tog det nemlig næsten en time for hende at cykle til arbejde, og nu tager det kun et kvarter. Og Sofie synes, det er dejligt at spare tid på transport.

betaler = pays

lidt mere = a little more

end = than

gjorde før = before

• decompose: gjorde = did, før = before
• “gjorde før” is a common phrase that means “before” or “previously”

alligevel = nevertheless

tog = took

• tog also means “train” in Danish, but in this context, it is the past tense of “tage” (to take)

nemlig = namely

næsten = almost

dejligt = lovely

spare = save

sparekassen = savings bank

Sofie pays a little more in rent than she did before. Nevertheless, she is happy that she moved. Before, it took her almost an hour to bike to work, and now it only takes a quarter of an hour. And Sofie thinks it’s lovely to save time on transportation.

• why “mere” is used here?

In this sentence, “mere” is used as a comparative adverb to indicate that Sofie pays more in rent than she did before. “Mere” means “more” in English and is used to compare the amount of rent she pays now with the amount she paid previously.

• why “spare” is used here?

In this sentence, “spare” is used as a verb meaning “to save” or “to spare.” Sofie thinks it’s lovely to save time on transportation, which means she appreciates the time she saves by living closer to work. The use of “spare” emphasizes the idea of saving or conserving time.

I den måned, Sofie har boet i opgangen, har der været meget stille, men en torsdag aften kan hun pludselig høre høj musik. Det er hendes nabo, Clara, der holder fest. Sofie skal op og på arbejde næste dag, så hun vil gerne tidligt i seng, og derfor håber hun, at festen ikke varer så længe.

opgangen = entrance (to a building)

meget stille = very quiet

plusdselig = suddenly

skal op = has to get up

tidligt = early

In the month that Sofie has lived in the building, it has been very quiet, but one Thursday evening she suddenly hears loud music. It’s her neighbor, Clara, who is having a party. Sofie has to get up for work the next day, so she would like to go to bed early, and therefore she hopes that the party doesn’t last too long.

• why “stille” is used here?

In this sentence, “stille” is used as an adjective to describe the environment in the building where Sofie lives. “Stille” means “quiet” in English, and it indicates that there has been a lack of noise or disturbance in the building during the month that Sofie has lived there. The use of “stille” emphasizes the contrast between the quiet environment and the sudden loud music from Clara’s party.

• why “tidligt” is used here?

In this sentence, “tidligt” is used as an adverb to describe when Sofie wants to go to bed. “Tidligt” means “early” in English, and it indicates that Sofie wants to go to bed at an early time because she has to get up for work the next day. The use of “tidligt” emphasizes Sofie’s desire to get enough rest before her workday.

Men klokken et om natten er musikken stadig høj, og Sofie ringer på hos Clara, for hun vil have hende til at skrue ned. Men døren bliver ikke åbnet, og festen slutter først klokken tre om natten. Sofie har svært ved at falde i søvn, selvom festen er slut, og der er fred og ro. Hun ligger nemlig og tænker på, at hun snart skal op.

staddig = still

for = because

skrue ned = turn down

slutter = ends

svært = difficult

at falde i søvn = to fall asleep

selvom = although

fred og ro = peace and quiet

But at one o’clock in the morning, the music is still loud, and Sofie rings Clara’s doorbell because she wants her to turn it down. But the door is not opened, and the party doesn’t end until three o’clock in the morning. Sofie has difficulty falling asleep, although the party is over, and there is peace and quiet. She is thinking about the fact that she has to get up soon.

• Why “for” is used here?

In this sentence, “for” is used as a conjunction meaning “because.” Sofie rings Clara’s doorbell because she wants her to turn down the music. The use of “for” introduces the reason for Sofie’s action.

• why “selvom” is used here?

In this sentence, “selvom” is used as a conjunction meaning “although.” Sofie has difficulty falling asleep, although the party is over and there is peace and quiet. The use of “selvom” introduces a contrast between the expected outcome (falling asleep easily) and the actual situation (having difficulty falling asleep).

Et par dage efter møder Sofie og Clara hinanden i opgangen, og Sofie fortæller, at hun ikke kunne sove om natten på grund af festen. Clara undskylder og siger, at hun ikke plejer at holde fest på hverdage, men at det kun var, fordi hun havde 25-års fødselsdag. Hun fortæller, at hun skal holde fest igen næste lørdag og spørger, om Sofie har lyst til at komme med. Sofie er stadig lidt irriteret, men hun vil alligevel gerne kommer til festen, for hun synes, Clara virker flink. De aftaler, at de vil sætte et opslag op i opgangen, så de andre naboer ved, at der skal være fest.

et par dage efter = a couple of days later

• par here means “a couple of” in Danish, and “dage efter” means “days later”

møder = meets

fortæller = tells

plejer = usually

spørger = asks

• spørgsmål = question, so “spørger” can be thought of as “asks a question”

lyst = desire, interest

stadig = still

irriteret = irritated

gerne = gladly, willingly

• fix expression, vil gerne = would like to

virker = seems

flink = nice

flot = great, fantastic

aftaler = agrees

opslag = notice, announcement

• “sætter et opslag op” means “put up a notice”
• decompose opslag: op = up, slag = strike, so “opslag” can be thought of as “up strike” or “notice”

A couple of days later, Sofie and Clara meet each other in the building entrance, and Sofie tells Clara that she couldn’t sleep at night because of the party. Clara apologizes and says that she doesn’t usually have parties on weekdays, but it was only because she had her 25th birthday. She tells Sofie that she is going to have another party next Saturday and asks if Sofie would like to come. Sofie is still a little irritated, but she would still like to come to the party because she thinks Clara seems nice. They agree that they will put up a notice in the building entrance so that the other neighbors know there will be a party.

• why “ikke” is used here?

In this sentence, “ikke” is used as a negation to indicate that Sofie could not sleep at night because of the party. “Ikke” means “not” in English, and it negates the verb “kunne sove” (could sleep), indicating that Sofie was unable to sleep due to the noise from the party. The use of “ikke” emphasizes the negative impact the party had on Sofie’s ability to sleep.

• why “gerne” is used here?

In this sentence, “gerne” is used as an adverb to indicate that Sofie would like to come to the party. “Gerne” means “gladly” or “willingly” in English, and it expresses Sofie’s positive attitude towards attending the party despite her irritation. The use of “gerne” emphasizes that Sofie is open to the idea of going to the party and is not completely opposed to it.

Other vocab:

• sent = late
  • sent om aftenen = late in the evening
  • kom for sent = came too late
• mindre = less
  • mindre i husleje = less in rent
• larm = noise
  • støj og larm = noise and disturbance
• tit = often
  • tit og ofte = often and frequently