Feeling nervous before class | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Jeg føler mig nervøs før undervisningen.

   I feel nervous before class.

   Jeg

   I

   føler

   feel

   mig

   myself

   nervøs

   nervous

   før

   before

   undervisningen

   the class

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” here: it is the first-person singular subject pronoun. Danish subject pronouns include jeg (“I”), du (“you,” singular), and vi (“we”). Example: Jeg er træt. — “I am tired.” føler is the present-tense form of føle, “to feel.” With jeg, it describes the speaker’s current experience. The same present form can also describe a general or ongoing situation, depending on context. Example: Jeg føler mig bedre. — “I feel better.” mig is the first-person singular object/reflexive pronoun, “myself” in this construction. Together, føler mig is the reusable pattern “feel,” literally expressing that the subject experiences a state. The subject and reflexive pronoun refer to the same person: Jeg føler mig ... — “I feel ...” nervøs is an adjective meaning “nervous.” It describes the speaker’s state after føler mig. In Danish, the adjective changes in some contexts: nervøs is used with a common-gender singular noun or after this type of føler mig construction, nervøst with a neuter singular noun, and nervøse with plural or definite noun phrases. Example: Hun føler sig nervøs. — “She feels nervous.” før means “before.” It can introduce a time expression, as here: før undervisningen means “before class.” It can also introduce a clause, for example før vi begynder — “before we begin.” undervisningen means “the class” here. Its base noun is undervisning, “teaching” or “instruction”; the ending -en marks the definite singular form of this common-gender noun: undervisning → undervisningen. The context and translation support the intended sense “class” in this sentence. Example: Undervisningen begynder klokken ni. — “The class begins at nine.” The sentence assembles as Jeg (I) + føler mig (feel) + nervøs (nervous) + før undervisningen (before class). Its complete meaning is: “I feel nervous before class.”

2. Den følelse er normal. Gruppen er venlig.

   That feeling is normal. The group is friendly.

   Den

   that/the

   følelse

   feeling

   er

   is

   normal

   normal

   Gruppen

   the group

   venlig

   friendly

   More detail

   Den means “that” here and agrees with the common-gender singular noun følelse. In Danish, a demonstrative such as den points to a specific noun; it is not itself the noun’s referent. Example: Den bog er ny. — “That book is new.” følelse means “feeling.” Its base form is følelse; the definite singular form is følelsen, and the plural is følelser. In the supplied sentence, Den følelse is the specific feeling being described. er is the present-tense form of være, “to be.” The same form is used with different subjects: Jeg er træt. — “I am tired.” normal describes the feeling as normal. It is the common-gender singular form of the adjective. Danish commonly has normal with a common-gender singular noun, normalt with a neuter singular noun, and normale in plural or definite adjective contexts. For example, Det er normalt. means “That is normal,” while Normale reaktioner hjælper. means “Normal reactions help.” Gruppen means “the group.” Its base form is gruppe; the ending -en marks singular definite form: gruppe — “a group,” gruppen — “the group.” This is a noun inflection, not an adjective ending. venlig means “friendly” here. It is the common-gender singular form of the adjective. The related forms are venligt with a neuter singular noun and venlige in plural or definite adjective contexts. Example: En venlig lærer hjælper. — “A friendly teacher helps.” Together, Den følelse er normal says “That feeling is normal”: the demonstrative identifies a specific feeling, er links it to its description, and normal supplies that description. Gruppen er venlig says “The group is friendly”: the definite noun identifies the group, and venlig describes it. The two short sentences therefore state that the specified feeling is normal and that the group is friendly.

3. Det er jeg glad for at høre.

   I am glad to hear that.

   Det

   that

   er jeg

   I am

   glad

   glad

   høre

   hear

   More detail

   Det means “that” here, referring to an established fact or situation. Its specific referent is supplied by the context, not by the form alone. Danish also uses den for a common-gender singular noun or referent; det is the neuter singular form. er jeg contains er, the present-tense form of være (“to be”), and jeg (“I”). With Det placed first, Danish has the finite verb in second position: Det er jeg .... A neutral equivalent with the same object expressed at the end is Jeg er glad for at høre det (“I am glad to hear that”). glad is the adjective “glad” or “pleased.” In jeg er glad, it describes the speaker. Its useful forms are glad for common-gender singular, gladt for neuter singular, and glade for plural or definite contexts. The observed form is the adjective’s form; jeg does not carry this adjective ending. høre is the infinitive “to hear,” the base form used after at (“to”). For example, Jeg vil høre mere. means “I want to hear more.” In glad for at høre, for belongs to the adjective construction glad for (“glad about” or “pleased to”), and at høre names what the speaker is pleased to do. Together, Det er jeg glad for at høre places Det (“that”) first and means “I am glad to hear that.” The reusable pattern is Jeg er glad for at ... (“I am glad to ...”); when the content is fronted as Det, Danish uses the word order Det er jeg glad for at ....

4. Vi tager det roligt i starten.

   We take things slowly at first.

   Vi

   we

   tager det roligt

   take things slowly

   i starten

   at first

   More detail

   Vi means “we”: a first-person plural pronoun for the speaker together with at least one other person. Danish subject pronouns include jeg (“I”), du (“you,” singular), and vi (“we”). Example: Vi kommer i morgen. — “We are coming tomorrow.” tager det roligt is the Danish expression used here for proceeding calmly or slowly. Its literal parts are tager (“take”), det (“it”), and roligt (“calmly”), but together they form a reusable expression rather than a literal instruction to take an object. tager is the present-tense form of tage (“take”); Danish present-tense verbs do not change for the subject, so the same form can occur with jeg, du, or vi. Example: Tag det roligt! — “Take it easy!” Here the imperative Tag is used instead of the present-tense tager. i starten means “at first” or “in the beginning.” starten is the definite form of start (“start”): en start means “a start,” while starten means “the start.” The preposition i commonly means “in,” and this expression places an activity in its initial period. Example: I starten var det svært. — “At first, it was difficult.” Together, Vi tager det roligt expresses that the group proceeds without hurrying, and i starten limits this to the initial period. The complete utterance therefore means: “We take things slowly at first.”

5. Det lyder godt.

   That sounds good.

   Det

   that

   lyder

   sounds

   godt

   good

   More detail

   Det is a Danish pronoun meaning “that” here. Its specific referent is not identified by the sentence itself, so learn the reusable pattern Det ...: the pronoun can point to an understood thing, situation, or statement. lyder means “sounds” in this sentence. It is the present-tense form of lyde (“to sound”): at lyde → lyder. A useful pattern is Det lyder + adjective, used to describe how something seems by sound or impression. Example: Det lyder svært. — “That sounds difficult.” godt means “good” here. It is the neuter singular form of the adjective god: god (common gender), godt (neuter singular), gode (plural and definite forms). The -t belongs to godt, not to lyder; it agrees with the neuter pronoun det in this predicative use. Together, Det lyder godt. means “That sounds good.” It is a neutral, reusable way to express a positive reaction to an idea, suggestion, plan, or other understood matter.

6. Den første del er let.

   The first part is easy.

   Den

   the

   første

   first

   del

   part

   let

   easy

   More detail

   Den is the definite article used with a singular common-gender noun phrase. Here it helps make første del definite: “the first part.” Danish also has det for singular neuter nouns and de for plural nouns; the choice is grammatical, not a statement about quantity. første means “first” here and is the ordinal form of først. In den første del, it identifies the part's position in an ordered set. første keeps this form in this phrase; it is not the noun's form. del means “part” here. Its base form is singular indefinite del; useful forms include delen “the part” and dele “parts.” In the fixed sentence, del is part of the definite noun phrase marked by Den together with the adjective. let means “easy” here. It is a descriptive adjective used after er to describe the subject. Danish adjective forms can vary with noun type and number: for example, en let opgave means “an easy task,” while et let spørgsmål means “an easy question”; plural or definite forms commonly use lette, as in lette opgaver “easy tasks.” In this sentence, let is the singular common-gender form. Together, Den første del means “the first part,” and er let means “is easy.” The complete utterance is therefore “The first part is easy.”