Fixing a Loose Chair | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Denne stol virker løs.

   This chair feels loose.

   Denne

   this

   stol

   chair

   virker

   seems; feels

   løs

   loose

   More detail

   Denne means “this” and points to one nearby or otherwise identified singular noun. It agrees with the common-gender noun stol; the corresponding form with a neuter singular noun is dette, while plural is disse. Example: Denne bog er ny. — “This book is new.” stol is the noun “chair.” Its indefinite form is en stol, and its definite form is stolen — “the chair.” In this sentence, stol follows the demonstrative denne, so the phrase identifies one particular chair without using the definite ending. virker is the present-tense form of virke, “to seem” or “to work,” depending on context. Here, with the adjective løs and the fixed translation, it means “seems/feels.” The present form is used for the chair’s current apparent condition. Example: Det virker rigtigt. — “It seems right.” løs means “loose” here. It is the common-gender singular form of the adjective; with a neuter singular noun, Danish uses løst, and with plural nouns it uses løse. Example: Skruen er løs. — “The screw is loose.” Together, Denne stol identifies one particular chair, virker presents an impression about its current condition, and løs describes that condition. The complete meaning is “This chair feels loose.”

2. Hvilken del bevæger sig?

   Which part is moving?

   Hvilken

   which

   del

   part

   bevæger sig

   is moving

   More detail

   Hvilken means “which” when it modifies a singular common-gender noun. It agrees with the noun it determines: hvilken for common-gender singular, hvilket for neuter singular, and hvilke for plural. Example: Hvilket ben bevæger sig? — “Which leg is moving?” del means “part.” It is a common-gender noun: en del — “a part,” delen — “the part,” dele — “parts,” and delene — “the parts.” In this question it is singular and follows Hvilken, giving the pattern hvilken + common-gender singular noun. bevæger sig is the present-tense form of bevæge sig, “to move.” bevæger is the present form of bevæge; sig is the reflexive pronoun used in this verb construction. Example: Bilen bevæger sig langsomt. — “The car is moving slowly.” The present form does not change for the subject’s person or number. Together, Hvilken del asks for the identity of a particular part, and bevæger sig describes that part as moving. The whole utterance therefore means “Which part is moving?” In the supplied context, the question can be understood as asking which part of the chair is moving.

3. Det bageste ben vipper lidt.

   The back leg wobbles a little.

   Det

   the

   bageste

   backmost

   ben

   leg

   vipper

   wobbles

   lidt

   a little

   More detail

   Det is the neuter singular definite article here. It belongs with the following adjective and noun: det + adjective + noun means “the [adjective] [noun].” Danish uses det because ben is a neuter noun; the article is not expressing a numerical count. bageste means “backmost” or “rearmost” here. It is the attributive form of bagest, used before a noun in a definite phrase. The phrase identifies the leg by its position, not by saying that the leg itself is located behind some separately mentioned object. Example: den bageste stol — “the backmost chair.” The article changes to den with a common-gender noun, while bageste stays the same in this construction. ben means “leg” in this sentence. Its base form is ben, and its plural is also ben; the form itself therefore does not show whether there is one leg or more than one. Here, det and the singular meaning of the fixed translation support “the leg.” Ben can also mean “bone” in other contexts, but “leg” is the intended meaning here. vipper is the present-tense form of vippe, “to wobble,” “to rock,” or “to tilt.” The action is presented as happening now: the leg has a slight rocking or unstable movement. Danish present-tense verbs generally do not change for person, so the same form can occur with different subjects: Jeg vipper — “I wobble”; Benet vipper — “The leg wobbles.” lidt means “a little” and limits the degree of the wobbling. It is an adverb here, so it describes how much the leg wobbles rather than naming a small object. Example: Døren vipper lidt — “The door wobbles a little.” Together, det bageste ben identifies the backmost leg, vipper says that it is wobbling in the present, and lidt reduces the degree of that movement. The complete meaning is: “The back leg wobbles a little.”

4. Vi bør reparere den, før nogen bruger den.

   We should fix it before anyone uses it.

   Vi bør

   we should

   reparere

   repair, fix

   den

   it

   før

   before

   nogen

   anyone

   bruger

   uses

   More detail

   Vi bør means “we should”: vi is the first-person plural subject pronoun, and bør is the present-tense form of burde, expressing advice or obligation. In Danish, bør is followed directly by an infinitive, without at: Vi bør vente means “We should wait.” reparere means “to repair” and is an infinitive. After the modal bør, it names the recommended action. The same infinitive pattern occurs after other modal verbs, for example Vi skal reparere den — “We have to repair it.” den is a third-person singular pronoun used for a common-gender singular referent. Here it means “it”; the supplied material does not identify the referent more specifically. Danish contrasts den with det, which is used for a neuter-gender singular referent. The choice is grammatical rather than a translation of English “it” into one universally fixed Danish form. før introduces a time relation and means “before.” It can introduce a full clause, as here: før nogen bruger den — “before anyone uses it.” nogen means “anyone” in this clause. It can also mean “someone” in an affirmative context, so its English rendering depends on the surrounding construction. Here it is the subject of the subordinate clause introduced by før. bruger is the present-tense form of bruge, “to use.” Danish present-tense verbs generally do not change for the subject, so jeg bruger, vi bruger, and nogen bruger all use bruger. The final den is again a common-gender singular pronoun and is the object of bruger in this clause. Together, Vi bør reparere den gives the recommendation “We should repair it.” før nogen bruger den adds the time condition: the repair should happen before anyone uses it. The complete utterance is therefore “We should fix it before anyone uses it.”

5. Skal jeg sidde et andet sted?

   Should I sit somewhere else?

   Skal jeg

   Should I

   sidde

   sit

   andet

   other; different

   sted

   place

   More detail

   Skal jeg combines the modal verb skal with the subject pronoun jeg. Here, skal expresses what the speaker should do, so the combination means “Should I …?” Danish places the subject after the modal in this yes/no question. After a modal such as skal, the next verb appears in the infinitive without at. sidde means “sit” here, specifically be seated or remain in a seated position. Its infinitive is sidde. A useful contrast is sætte sig, “sit down,” which describes moving into a seated position; sidde describes the resulting position. Example: Jeg sidder her. — “I am sitting here.” andet is the neuter singular form of the adjective anden, “other” or “another.” The neuter form is used because sted is a neuter noun: et sted, “a place.” The main forms are en anden, et andet, and andre for plural or certain definite uses. Example: et andet svar — “another answer.” sted means “place.” It is a neuter noun: et sted (indefinite singular), stedet (definite singular), and steder (plural). In this utterance, sted is part of the reusable phrase et andet sted, literally “another place,” which naturally means “somewhere else.” Putting the parts together, Skal jeg sidde asks whether the speaker should sit, and et andet sted specifies a different place from the current or previously relevant one. The complete meaning is: “Should I sit somewhere else?”

6. Brug en anden stol indtil videre.

   Use another chair for now.

   Brug

   use

   anden

   another

   stol

   chair

   indtil videre

   for now

   More detail

   Brug means “use” here. It is the imperative of bruge (“to use”), used to give a direct instruction. Compare the useful forms bruge (to use) and brug (use!). Example: Brug denne stol. — “Use this chair.” anden means “another” in this sentence: it presents the chair as different from one already relevant. Its base form is anden; Danish changes the form according to the noun’s grammatical gender and number, so do not treat anden as an unchanging English-style form. Example: en anden dag — “another day.” stol means “chair.” With the indefinite article en, it is singular and indefinite: en stol means “a chair.” The article marks an unspecified singular noun here; it does not by itself assert a numerical contrast. Example: Jeg har en stol. — “I have a chair.” indtil videre is a fixed adverbial expression meaning “for now” or “until further notice.” It sets a temporary time frame for the instruction. Example: Bliv her indtil videre. — “Stay here for now.” Together, Brug en anden stol gives the instruction “Use another chair,” and indtil videre limits it to the present temporary situation. The complete meaning is: “Use another chair for now.”

7. Jeg flytter denne stol væk.

   I will move this one away.

   Jeg

   I

   flytter

   move

   denne

   this

   stol

   chair

   væk

   away

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” here: it is the first-person singular subject, the person carrying out the action. Danish subject pronouns do not change for grammatical gender. Example: Jeg kommer. — “I am coming.” flytter is the present-tense form of flytte, “to move.” Danish verbs do not change their form for person or number, so the same flytter can occur with different subjects. In this sentence, the fixed translation uses the Danish present form for a future action: “will move.” Example: Jeg flytter stolen i morgen. — “I will move the chair tomorrow.” denne means “this” and points to one nearby or contextually identified item. It is the singular common-gender form used with stol; the corresponding neuter singular form is dette, and the plural form is disse. The demonstrative agrees with the noun’s grammatical form, not with the speaker. Example: denne bog — “this book.” stol means “chair.” Its useful indefinite form is en stol — “a chair,” while the definite form is stolen — “the chair.” Here it appears after the demonstrative in the combination denne stol, “this chair.” væk means “away.” As an adverb, it indicates movement away from the relevant place or position; it does not itself specify a destination. Example: Gå væk. — “Go away.” Together, Jeg flytter supplies the subject and moving action, denne stol identifies the object as “this chair,” and væk adds the direction “away.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I will move this chair away.”

8. Stil den op ad væggen, så gangen er fri.

   Put it against the wall so the walkway stays clear.

   Stil

   put/place

   den

   it

   op ad

   up against

   væggen

   the wall

   så

   so that

   gangen

   the walkway

   fri

   clear

   More detail

   Stil is the imperative of stille, “to put/place.” It gives a direct instruction to one or more people; the subject “you” is understood rather than written. The same imperative can be reused in Stil koppen på bordet. — “Put the cup on the table.” den means “it” here and refers to the item being moved in the supplied context, the chair. In Danish, den is used for a singular common-gender noun; stol is such a noun. A neuter singular noun instead takes det in the corresponding pronoun role. op ad is the reusable placement pattern “against” or “up against.” It describes positioning something beside and touching a vertical surface; op and ad work together here rather than functioning as two separate translations. For example, Stil cyklen op ad muren. means “Put the bicycle against the wall.” væggen is the definite singular form of væg, “wall”: væg → væggen. The definite form presents a particular wall that is identifiable in the situation. In Danish, this definiteness is expressed in the ending rather than with a separate word corresponding to English “the.” så introduces the intended result or purpose here: “so that.” It connects the placement instruction with the condition that should result from it. A reusable pattern is Gør X, så Y — “Do X so that Y.” gangen is the definite singular form of gang, “walkway” or “corridor”: gang → gangen. The definite form refers to the particular passage relevant to the situation. fri is the common-gender singular form of the adjective fri, meaning “clear” here. In gangen er fri, it is a predicative adjective describing the walkway after er (“is”). The form contrasts with neuter singular frit and plural or definite attributive frie; for example, Pladsen er fri. means “The space is clear.” Together, Stil den op ad væggen means “Put it against the wall.” The clause så gangen er fri adds the intended result, “so that the walkway stays clear.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Put it against the wall so the walkway stays clear.”