About This Lesson
Use Basic checks and status to practice Danish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.
Dialogue
A
Er det okay?
air deh oh-KAY? Is this okay?
B
Er det din taske?
air deh deen TAS-kuh? Is this your bag?
A
Sidder der nogen her?
SEE-thuh dah NOH-un hair? Is anyone sitting here?
B
Har du travlt nu?
hah doo TRAHWLT noo? Are you busy now?
A
Er du klar nu?
air doo KLAH noo? Are you ready now?
B
Har du brug for hjælp?
hah doo BROO faw YELP? Do you need help?Word by Word
Er
“Er” means “is” or “are” in these questions. It is a form of the Danish verb være, “to be,” and appears at the beginning of questions such as “Er det okay?” and “Er du klar nu?”
det
“det” refers to the thing being checked or identified, giving “it” or “that” in these questions. It follows “Er” in the reusable question pattern “Er det ...?”
okay
“okay” means acceptable or all right here. In “Er det okay?”, it asks whether a situation or action is acceptable; the same expression can be used when checking permission or suitability.
din
“din” means “your” and shows that the bag belongs to the person being addressed. It comes before “taske” in “din taske”; this possessive-before-noun pattern can be reused with another known noun.
taske
“taske” means “bag” in “Er det din taske?” It is the thing whose ownership is being checked, and it can be used after a possessive such as “din”.
Sidder
“Sidder” means “is sitting” here and asks about someone’s seated position. It is a form of Danish sidde, “to sit”; the question pattern “Sidder der nogen her?” checks whether a person is occupying the place.
der
“der” has an existential function in “Sidder der nogen her?” and helps introduce the question of whether anyone is present and sitting. It works inside the pattern “der nogen” rather than carrying the whole meaning of the sentence by itself.
nogen
“nogen” means “anyone” in this question and refers to an unspecified person. In “Sidder der nogen her?”, it appears after “der” to ask whether any person is sitting here.
her
“her” means “here” and identifies the place being asked about. In “Sidder der nogen her?”, it comes at the end to locate the possible person; it can be reused when pointing to the current place.
Har
“Har” means “have” in these questions about a person’s state or need. It is a form of Danish have, “to have,” and appears in patterns such as “Har du travlt nu?” and “Har du brug for hjælp?”
du
“du” means “you” and identifies the person being addressed. It follows “Er” or “Har” in questions such as “Er du klar nu?” and “Har du travlt nu?”
travlt
“travlt” means “busy” in the expression “Har du travlt nu?”, asking whether the person has a lot to do now. The citation form is Danish travl; the reusable expression here is “har travlt” for asking about someone’s busyness.
nu
“nu” means “now” and limits the question to the present time. It appears at the end of “Har du travlt nu?” and “Er du klar nu?”, a useful position for a time word in these questions.
klar
“klar” means “ready” in “Er du klar nu?” It asks whether the person is prepared to proceed at this moment; the full question can be reused when checking readiness.
brug for
“brug for” is the expression used for “need” in “Har du brug for hjælp?” Treat it as a whole with “har”: “brug” supplies the central use-or-need element, while “for” introduces the thing needed, here “hjælp”; the expression is reused before that needed thing.
hjælp
“hjælp” means “help” and is the thing that may be needed in “Har du brug for hjælp?” It follows “brug for” in the reusable expression “brug for hjælp” when offering or checking for assistance.
Grammar Points
har brug for + substantiv
Du har brug for hjælp.
doo hah broo faw YELP.You need help.
The fixed Danish expression har brug for means “need” and is followed by the thing that is needed.
Der er + substantiv
Der er nogen her.
dah air NOH-un hair.There is someone here.
Danish uses Der er to introduce that someone or something exists or is present in a place.
Danish Vocabulary
der
adv
dah
there
det
pron
deh
it / that
din
det
deen
your
du
pron
doo
you
er
verb
air
is / are
har
verb
hah
have
her
adv
hair
here
nogen
pron
NOH-un
anyone / someone
okay
adj
oh-KAY
okay
sidder
verb
SEE-thuh
is sitting / sits
taske
noun
TAS-kuh
bag
travlt
adj
TRAHWLT
busy
Quiz
Word Order
Arrange the words in the correct order.
Is this okay?
Show Answer
Er det okay?Is this your bag?
Show Answer
Er det din taske?Is anyone sitting here?
Show Answer
Sidder der nogen her?Spelling
Tap the letters to spell the word.
okay
Show Answer
okaybag
Show Answer
taskeanyone / someone
Show Answer
nogenis sitting / sits