Basic understanding and knowledge | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Jeg forstår det nu.

   I understand now.

   Jeg

   I

   forstår

   understand

   det

   it

   nu

   now

   More detail

   Jeg is the Danish first-person singular pronoun meaning “I.” It marks the speaker as the subject. Compare du for “you” when addressing one person. forstår is the present-tense form of forstå, “to understand.” Danish present-tense verb forms generally do not change according to the subject’s person or gender, so forstår is also used with other present subjects. Example: Jeg forstår. — “I understand.” det is a neuter singular pronoun used here as the object of forstår, with the meaning “it.” Its exact referent is not identified by the fixed sentence. The neuter form is a grammatical property of the pronoun; it does not by itself identify what “it” refers to. nu means “now” and places the understanding at the present time. Example: Jeg forstår det nu. — “I understand it now.” Together, Jeg forstår det nu. means “I understand now.” The target sentence includes det, literally “it,” while the fixed English translation leaves that object implicit. The reusable pattern is subject + present-tense verb + object pronoun + time adverb: Jeg forstår det nu.

2. Jeg forstår det ikke.

   I do not understand.

   Jeg

   I

   forstår

   understand

   det

   it

   ikke

   not

   More detail

   Jeg is the Danish first-person singular pronoun, meaning the speaker. It is used for “I” regardless of the speaker’s gender. Example: Jeg læser. — “I am reading.” forstår is the present-tense form of forstå, “to understand.” The form expresses present understanding; the ending -r is part of this present-tense form. Example: Jeg forstår spørgsmålet. — “I understand the question.” det is a singular neuter pronoun meaning “it” here. The sentence and translation identify it as the thing being understood, without specifying what that thing is. Danish det can have other uses in different sentences, so its exact referent comes from context. ikke is the ordinary Danish negation word “not.” In this main clause, it follows the finite verb forstår: Jeg forstår ikke ... means “I do not understand ...”. Unlike the contextual sentence Jeg forstår det nu. — “I understand it now,” this sentence contains ikke and therefore negates the understanding. nu in the contextual sentence adds the time “now”; it does not itself remove a negation. The other contextual sentence uses a different verb, ved (“know”), so forstår should not be replaced by it when the intended meaning is understanding. Together, Jeg + forstår gives “I understand,” det supplies the object “it,” and ikke negates the verb. The complete utterance therefore means “I do not understand.”

3. Jeg ved det ikke.

   I do not know.

   Jeg

   I

   ved

   know

   det

   it

   ikke

   not

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” here: it is the first-person singular pronoun, used when the speaker refers to themself. For comparison, du means “you” for one person. Example: Jeg forstår. — “I understand.” ved is the present-tense form of vide, “to know,” used for knowledge of a fact or piece of information. The related verb kende is generally used for familiarity with a person, place, or work, so Jeg ved det is different from Jeg kender ham — “I know him.” Example: Jeg ved, hvor hun bor. — “I know where she lives.” det is a pronoun meaning “it” or “that” in this sentence. Its specific content is not named in the utterance; the form itself is a neuter singular pronoun, and the translation confirms the intended object as “it.” Example: Jeg husker det. — “I remember it.” ikke means “not” and supplies the negation. In this main clause, it comes after the finite verb and the object: Jeg ved det ikke. This placement creates the negative statement “I do not know.” Example: Jeg forstår det ikke. — “I do not understand.” Together, Jeg ved det means “I know it,” and adding ikke negates that statement: Jeg ved det ikke. — “I do not know.” The sentence is a direct, ordinary way to say that the speaker does not know the relevant information.

4. Hvad mener du?

   What do you mean?

   Hvad

   what

   mener

   mean

   du

   you

   More detail

   Hvad means “what” here: it asks for the content of someone’s meaning. It is a question word, not a noun naming a specific thing. Compare hvem (“who”) when asking about a person. mener is the present-tense form of mene, “to mean” or “to think.” Danish verbs do not change form to agree with the person or number of the subject, so mener is not a special form for du. In this sentence, it asks what the other person intends to say. Example: Hvad mener hun? — “What does she mean?” du means “you” and is the singular second-person subject pronoun in this sentence. It does not mark the addressee’s gender. In a Danish question such as this one, the verb comes before the subject: mener du (“do you mean”). Together, Hvad + mener + du forms the question Hvad mener du? — “What do you mean?” The question asks the addressee to clarify the meaning or intention of something they have said.

5. Forstår du mig?

   Do you understand me?

   Forstår

   understand

   du

   you

   mig

   me

   More detail

   Forstår is the present-tense form of forstå, “to understand.” In a question with du as the subject, it asks about the listener’s current understanding. The same verb form can be used with other subjects: Jeg forstår means “I understand.” du is the second-person singular subject pronoun, “you.” It refers to the person being addressed. In Danish, the subject comes after the verb here because this is a yes/no question: Forstår du ...? Compare the ordinary statement Du forstår ..., “You understand ...”. mig is the first-person singular object pronoun, “me.” It is the object of forstår, so the speaker is the person understood. The subject/object contrast is visible in du versus mig: Du forstår mig means “You understand me,” while Jeg forstår dig means “I understand you.” Together, the pattern Forstår du mig? means “Do you understand me?” The present-tense verb introduces the yes/no question, du identifies the person whose understanding is being asked about, and mig identifies the speaker as the object of understanding.

6. Kender du ham?

   Do you know him?

   Kender

   know (be acquainted with)

   du

   you

   ham

   him

   More detail

   Kender is the present-tense form of kende for du (“you”): du kender = “you know / are acquainted with.” Danish commonly distinguishes kende for knowing a person or being familiar with something from vide for knowing a fact or piece of information. Example: Jeg kender hende. — “I know her.” Du is the second-person singular subject pronoun, “you.” In this question it is placed after the verb, as is typical in a direct Danish yes/no question: Kender du ...? The same pronoun is used regardless of the addressee’s gender. Ham is the singular masculine personal object pronoun, “him.” It marks the person known here as the object of kender; the corresponding feminine object form is hende. Together, Kender + du forms the question pattern “Do you know ...?”, and ham supplies the object: Kender du ham? means “Do you know him?”