Waiting in the Right Line | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Er det den rigtige kø?

   Is this the right line?

   Er det

   is it

   den

   the

   rigtige

   right; correct

   kø

   line; queue

   More detail

   Er det is a reusable Danish yes/no question pattern: Er det ...? means “Is it/this ...?” Here er is the present-tense form of være (“to be”); er is also used with other persons in the present tense. Det is a neuter singular pronoun. In this sentence, the translation identifies it as “this,” while the exact thing being identified comes from the situation. Example: Er det din taske? — “Is that your bag?” den is the definite article used with a common-gender singular noun. It is not a number word by itself. In this sentence it makes the following noun phrase definite: “the ...”. Danish also has det as the definite article with neuter singular nouns, so the article agrees with the noun’s grammatical gender. rigtige comes from the adjective rigtig, meaning “correct” or “right.” In den rigtige kø, the definite noun phrase uses the form rigtige after den; the ending belongs to the adjective, not to the noun. The base/comparison chain is rigtig (“right/correct”), rigtigere (“more correct”), rigtigst (“most correct”). Here it means the correct queue, not a direction such as “right” versus “left.” Example: Det er den rigtige adresse. — “It is the correct address.” kø means “queue” or “line,” the place where people wait. It is a common-gender noun: en kø means “a queue,” while køen means “the queue.” Its plural is køer, and the definite plural is køerne. The parts combine as Er det + den rigtige kø: “Is this” + “the correct queue/line?” The complete utterance is therefore “Is this the right line?” It is a direct yes/no question asking whether the indicated queue is the correct one.”

2. Den går hen til skranken.

   It goes to the front desk.

   Den

   it; that one

   går

   goes; walks

   hen til

   over to; toward

   skranken

   the front desk

   More detail

   Den is the Danish form used here for “it,” with a common-gender singular referent. It can also be a demonstrative meaning “that one.” Its exact referent is not uniquely identified by this sentence. Danish uses den with common-gender singular referents and det with neuter singular referents. Example: Den er her. — “It is here.” går means “goes” here and is the present-tense form of gå, “to go; to walk.” The present form is used with different subjects, so the subject is shown separately: Jeg går means “I go,” while hun går means “she goes.” Example: Hun går hjem. — “She is going home.” hen til is a reusable movement pattern meaning “over to” or “toward.” til marks the destination, while hen adds a directional sense of moving over or onward; til alone can also mark a destination. Example: Vi går hen til døren. — “We walk over to the door.” skranken means “the front desk” here. It is the definite singular form of skranke, “front desk” or “counter”: skranke → skranken. The ending -en marks a definite common-gender singular noun, so it corresponds here to “the” and also distinguishes the form from the plural forms. Example: Jeg står ved skranken. — “I am standing at the front desk.” Together, Den går hen til skranken means “It goes to the front desk.” Den is the subject, går expresses movement, hen til marks movement toward a destination, and skranken identifies that destination as the front desk.

3. Er skranken længere fremme?

   Is the front desk up ahead?

   Er

   is

   skranken

   the front desk

   længere fremme

   up ahead

   More detail

   Er is the present-tense form of være (“to be”). In Danish, er is used with all persons, so it does not change for “I,” “you,” or “they.” In this utterance it comes first because Danish forms a yes/no question by placing the finite verb before the subject. Example: Er du klar? — “Are you ready?” skranken means “the front desk” here. It is the definite singular form of the noun skranke: en skranke means “a front desk,” while skranken means “the front desk.” The ending -en marks definite singular for this common-gender noun. Example: Jeg står ved skranken. — “I am standing at the front desk.” længere fremme means “farther ahead” or “up ahead” in this sentence. længere is the comparative form of lang (“long”); with a spatial expression such as fremme (“ahead/in front”), it conveys greater distance forward rather than physical length. Example: Butikken ligger længere fremme. — “The shop is farther ahead.” Together, Er + skranken + længere fremme gives the yes/no question “Is the front desk up ahead?” The context identifies skranken as the front desk that the route leads to and that can be seen from the current location.

4. Vi kan se den herfra.

   We can see it from here.

   Vi kan

   we can

   se

   see

   den

   it

   herfra

   from here

   More detail

   Vi kan means “we can.” vi is the first-person plural pronoun, “we,” and kan is the present form of kunne, “can/be able to.” In Danish, kan is followed directly by the infinitive, without an English-style “to”: Vi kan se = “We can see.” se means “see.” It is the infinitive after the modal kan; the same form is used after other modal verbs, for example Jeg vil se det = “I want to see it.” Do not treat se as a form of kan: kan expresses ability here, while se names the action. den means “it” here, referring to the understood thing that can be seen. It is a third-person singular object pronoun used with a common-gender referent in Danish. The sentence itself does not identify that referent more specifically. Danish also has det for a neuter-gender singular referent, so the choice between den and det depends on the grammatical gender of the understood noun, not simply on the fact that there is one object. herfra means “from here.” It is an adverb expressing the starting point of seeing. The ending -fra contributes the meaning “from,” as also seen in the separate preposition fra; herfra is a single established adverb meaning “from here.” For example, Man kan se havet herfra means “You can see the sea from here.” Together, Vi kan se den herfra says that the speakers are able to see the understood common-gender singular object from their current location: “We can see it from here.” The order is subject (Vi), modal (kan), action (se), object (den), and place-of-origin adverb (herfra).

5. Skal jeg stille mig bag dig?

   Should I stand behind you?

   Skal jeg

   Should I

   stille mig

   stand / position myself

   bag

   behind

   dig

   you

   More detail

   Skal jeg begins a question about what the speaker should do: skal is the present form of skulle, used here as a modal meaning “should” or “shall,” and jeg means “I.” In a yes/no question, this modal comes before the subject. Compare the statement Jeg skal ... (“I should ...”) with the question Skal jeg ...? (“Should I ...?”). stille mig expresses positioning oneself. The base verb is stille; with a person as the object, stille sig means “position oneself” or, in a suitable context, “stand.” Here mig is the first-person object/reflexive form corresponding to the speaker: jeg (“I”) becomes mig in this object position. After the modal skal, Danish uses the infinitive without at: Skal jeg stille ...? Example: Jeg skal stille mig her. — “I should stand here.” bag is the preposition “behind.” It introduces the position relative to another person or thing, as in bag huset (“behind the house”). dig means “you” in an object or prepositional position. It is the form used after a preposition such as bag; the corresponding subject form is du (“you”). Example: Jeg står bag dig. — “I am standing behind you.” Together, Skal jeg asks whether the speaker should perform the action, stille mig describes positioning the speaker, and bag dig specifies the position relative to the addressee. The whole utterance therefore means “Should I stand behind you?”

6. Bliv tæt på; der er ikke meget plads.

   Stay close; there isn't much space.

   Bliv

   stay

   tæt på

   close to

   der er

   there is

   ikke

   not

   meget

   much

   plads

   space

   More detail

   Bliv is the imperative of blive. Here it means “stay,” telling the person to remain in a position; blive can also mean “become” in other contexts. Example: Bliv her. — “Stay here.” tæt på is a reusable expression meaning “close to” or “near.” tæt describes close distance, and på is the short preposition used in this expression. Example: Huset ligger tæt på stationen. — “The house is close to the station.” der er is the Danish existential pattern for introducing something that exists or is present: “there is” or “there are.” The verb form er is the present form of være (“be”), and der er is used with both singular and plural subjects. Example: Der er to stole. — “There are two chairs.” ikke places negation on the clause. In this sentence, it makes the statement negative: there is not much space. Example: Der er ikke tid. — “There is no time.” meget means “much” with an uncountable or mass quantity such as plads here. Its countable plural counterpart is mange: mange stole means “many chairs,” whereas meget plads means “much space.” plads means “space” here, specifically available room. It is a common-gender noun: en plads, “a space/place,” and plads can refer either to room or to a place/spot depending on context. Example: Vi har ikke plads. — “We do not have room.” Together, Bliv tæt på gives the instruction “Stay close,” and der er ikke meget plads adds the reason or situation: “there isn’t much space.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Stay close; there isn’t much space.”

7. Køen går langsomt.

   The line is moving slowly.

   Køen

   the line

   går

   moves; goes

   langsomt

   slowly

   More detail

   Køen means “the line” here. It is the definite singular form of kø (“line”): en kø = “a line”, køen = “the line”. Danish marks definiteness on the noun, rather than using a separate word corresponding to English “the” in this form. Example: Køen er lang. — “The line is long.” går is the present-tense form of gå (“go; walk”). With a queue or line, går can describe its progress, so here it means that the line is moving, not necessarily that people are walking. Example: Tiden går hurtigt. — “Time passes quickly.” langsomt means “slowly”. It is the adverbial form related to the adjective langsom (“slow”); it describes how the line moves. Compare Køen er langsom. — “The line is slow” with Køen går langsomt. — “The line moves slowly.” Together, Køen går langsomt means “The line is moving slowly.” The definite noun identifies the line already understood in the situation, går states its present progress, and langsomt specifies the speed.

8. Vi kan vente lidt længere.

   We can wait a little longer.

   Vi kan

   we can

   vente

   wait

   lidt

   a little

   længere

   longer

   More detail

   Vi kan means “we can.” Vi is the first-person plural pronoun “we.” Kan is the present-tense form of kunne, “can/be able to”; it does not itself specify whether the ability is physical, practical, or permitted. In this utterance, it expresses that waiting is possible. After kan, Danish uses the infinitive without at: Vi kan vente = “We can wait.” vente means “to wait.” It is the infinitive, and it follows the modal verb kan. A reusable pattern is kan + infinitive: Jeg kan komme = “I can come.” lidt means “a little” or “slightly.” Here it modifies the following comparison and makes the increase small: lidt længere = “a little longer.” Lidt is not the subject or the verb; it indicates a small degree or amount. længere means “longer” here. It is the comparative form related to lang (“long”): lang → længere → længst (“long” → “longer” → “longest”). In this sentence it describes a greater duration of waiting, not a person or object becoming physically longer. The combination lidt længere is a reusable way to say “a little longer.” Together, Vi kan vente lidt længere means “We can wait a little longer.” The modal construction presents waiting as possible, and lidt længere specifies that the waiting can continue for a small additional duration. This is a natural, neutral way to state that continuing to wait is possible.