Checking in at a hotel | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Jeg har en reservation på et værelse her.

   I have a room reservation here.

   Jeg

   I

   har

   have

   en reservation

   a reservation

   på

   on; at

   et værelse

   a room

   her

   here

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” and is the first-person singular subject pronoun. It identifies the speaker as the person who has the reservation. For example: Jeg har tid. — “I have time.” har is the present-tense form of have (“to have”): jeg har — “I have.” The same form is used with several present-tense subjects, for example hun har — “she has.” en reservation means “a reservation.” reservation is the noun; its useful base form is reservation, and en is the indefinite article used with this noun. The article marks an unspecified reservation, not a stated numerical count. For example: Jeg har en reservation. — “I have a reservation.” på is a preposition. In this sentence, på et værelse connects the reservation with the room and is naturally understood as “for a room.” The exact English preposition is determined by the relationship expressed, not by a fixed one-to-one translation of på. et værelse means “a room.” værelse is the noun, and et is its indefinite article. Danish uses en and et with different noun classes: en reservation, but et værelse. For example: Det er et værelse. — “It is a room.” her means “here” and indicates the place relevant to the speaker. It is an adverb and does not change to agree with a noun. For example: Jeg bor her. — “I live here.” Together, Jeg har states that the speaker possesses or has arranged something, en reservation på et værelse specifies that the reservation is for a room, and her locates it here. The complete utterance therefore means: “I have a room reservation here.”

2. Må jeg se dit pas, tak?

   Could I see your passport, please?

   Må jeg

   Could I

   se

   see

   dit

   your

   pas

   passport

   tak

   please

   More detail

   Må jeg combines the modal verb må with jeg (“I”). Må is the present form of måtte and expresses permission or possibility; in this request, Må jeg ...? is a polite way to ask “Could I ...?” Danish yes/no questions commonly place the finite verb before the subject: Må jeg ...? Compare the reusable pattern Må jeg komme ind? — “Could I come in?” se means “see”. After the modal må, the following verb is in the infinitive: må ... se, not a finite form. The pattern Må jeg se ...? can therefore be reused to ask politely to see something. dit means “your” when addressing one person. It is the possessive form used with a singular neuter noun. Here it agrees with pas, which is et pas; the possessive is therefore dit pas. With a common-gender singular noun, the corresponding form is commonly din, as in the example din billet — “your ticket.” pas means “passport” here. It is a noun with the neuter article et: et pas, “a passport.” The plural is pas as well, so number is understood from the surrounding words; in this sentence, dit shows that one passport is intended. tak literally means “thanks,” but at the end of a request it functions as “please.” It makes the request more courteous. The same word can also be used independently to say “thanks,” depending on its position and context. Together, Må jeg se dit pas, tak? means “Could I see your passport, please?” The question uses the permission-seeking modal må, places it before the subject jeg, follows it with the infinitive se, and identifies what is requested through dit pas.

3. Her er det. Jeg har det klar.

   Here it is. I have it ready.

   Her

   here

   er

   is / are

   det

   it

   har

   have / has

   klar

   ready

   More detail

   Her means “here.” It is a place word and can stand at the beginning to point out where something is. Example: Her er min taske. — “Here is my bag.” er is the present-tense form of være, “to be.” The same form is used with singular and plural subjects: Det er — “It is”; De er — “They are.” Here, er links the place word Her with det. det is a third-person singular neuter pronoun meaning “it” here. In the supplied exchange, it refers to the passport being requested. Danish det can also refer to a neuter noun in other contexts, but its grammatical class does not by itself identify every possible referent. har is the present-tense form of have, “to have.” It is used with jeg (“I”) and also with third-person singular subjects: jeg har — “I have”; hun har — “she has.” Unlike English, Danish does not change this present form for those persons. klar means “ready” here. With have, it describes the state in which the object is available or prepared: Jeg har maden klar. — “I have the food ready.” The fixed sentence uses the observed form klar; do not replace it in an explanation of the source with an unobserved alternative. Together, Her er det means “Here it is,” pointing out the requested item. Jeg har det klar means “I have it ready,” saying that the speaker has that item prepared and available. The two sentences first present the item and then describe its ready state.

4. Kunne du skrive under her?

   Could you sign here?

   Kunne du

   could you

   skrive under

   sign

   her

   here

   More detail

   Kunne du combines kunne, the past form of kan (“can”), with du, the second-person singular pronoun (“you”). In this question, kunne does not place the signing in the past; it makes the request more tentative and polite. A direct alternative is Kan du skrive under her? (“Can you sign here?”). The pronoun du addresses one person and does not change for grammatical gender. Example: Kunne du vente lidt? — “Could you wait a little?” Here, the same form makes a request politely rather than describing past ability. skrive under is a two-word Danish verb meaning “sign” in this context. Its first word, skrive, is the verb “write”; together with under, the construction has the specialized meaning “sign,” so it should be learned as a reusable unit. The verb can be followed by på when the signed document or item is specified: skrive under på formularen — “sign the form.” Example: Jeg skal skrive under på kontrakten. — “I have to sign the contract.” The subject and tense are expressed by the surrounding words; skrive under itself remains in this infinitive form after skal. her means “here” and points to the location relevant in the situation. It is an adverb, so it does not change for number or gender. Its contrast is der (“there”): Skriv under her, ikke der. — “Sign here, not there.” Together, Kunne du skrive under her? asks one person politely whether they would sign at the indicated place. The location is given by her, while kunne du frames skrive under as a polite request rather than a claim about past action.

5. Har du også brug for min underskrift på denne formular?

   Do you need my signature on this form too?

   Har du

   do you have

   også

   also; too

   brug for

   need

   min

   my

   underskrift

   signature

   denne

   this

   formular

   form

   More detail

   Har du is a reusable way to ask “do you have…?” in the present tense. har is the present form of have; Danish present-tense questions can keep the verb before the subject: Har du ...? (“Do you have ...?”). The subject du means “you” for one person. også means “also” or “too”. Here it adds this request to the earlier request about signing, so the question asks whether the signature is needed as well. Its position can change with emphasis, but in this sentence it comes directly after du. brug for is the fixed expression “need”. The noun brug by itself can have other uses, but in have brug for it forms the ordinary Danish pattern for needing something: have brug for + noun. For example, Jeg har brug for hjælp. means “I need help.” The verb har belongs to this expression as well as to the question pattern: Har du brug for ...? means “Do you need ...?” min means “my” before a common-gender singular noun. It agrees with the noun it modifies, not with the person who owns the thing. Danish possessives include min with a common-gender singular noun, mit with a neuter singular noun, and mine with plural nouns. For example, min bog is “my book”, while mit brev is “my letter”. underskrift means “signature”. It is a common-gender singular noun, which is why the possessive form here is min: min underskrift. The related verb in the preceding context is skrive under, “sign”; this noun names the result or written signature, rather than repeating the verb construction. denne means “this” and points to a singular noun that is close or contextually identified. In denne formular, it is the demonstrative modifying formular; it does not itself identify what the form contains. Danish also has plural disse for “these”. formular means “form” or “form document”. It is a common-gender singular noun, shown by the definite form formularen in the next sentence (“the form”). Here it follows denne, giving the phrase denne formular, “this form”. The phrase på denne formular means “on this form”: på supplies the relation between the signature and the document. Combining the parts gives Har du også brug for min underskrift på denne formular?: “Do you also need my signature on this form?” The question asks about the need for the speaker’s signature on the specified form; også connects this need with the earlier signing request.

6. Det er fint nederst på formularen.

   At the bottom of this form is fine.

   Det er

   it is

   fint

   fine

   nederst

   at the bottom

   på

   on

   formularen

   the form

   More detail

   Det er is the common Danish “it is” construction. Here, Det provides the subject of the clause, while the surrounding context and fixed translation make the statement about what is acceptable at a location on the form. In other sentences, det er can introduce an evaluation or description: Det er vigtigt. — “It is important.” fint means “fine” here, in the sense of acceptable or suitable. It is the neuter singular form of the adjective fin, used with det: fin (common gender), fint (neuter singular), fine (plural or definite forms). This form is not the noun formularen; fint describes the situation expressed by det er. nederst means “at the bottom” or “lowest down.” It is a positional form related to nede (“down/below”); compare øverst (“at the top”). It specifies the lower end of the form rather than a general position somewhere on it. på is the preposition “on” and marks the surface or document where something is located. In på formularen, it connects the location nederst with the document. formularen means “the form.” The base noun is formular, an en-gender noun; the definite singular form adds -en: en formular — “a form,” formularen — “the form.” The preceding context identifies this as the form already being discussed, while the sentence itself uses definiteness rather than the demonstrative “this.” Together, nederst på formularen means “at the bottom of the form.” The sentence combines this location with Det er fint, yielding the intended meaning: “At the bottom of this form is fine.” The Danish sentence does not explicitly name what is acceptable there; the fixed translation presents the location as the acceptable one.

7. Hvor serveres morgenmaden i morgen tidlig?

   Where is breakfast served tomorrow morning?

   Hvor

   where

   serveres

   is served

   morgenmaden

   the breakfast

   i morgen tidlig

   tomorrow morning

   More detail

   Hvor means “where” and asks for a place. It is a question word, not a word for a person or thing. Example: Hvor bor du? — “Where do you live?” serveres means “is served” here. It is the present passive form of servere (“to serve”): serverer means “serves/is serving,” while serveres presents the serving without naming the server. Danish passive forms in -s do not show a separate person or number agreement on the verb. Example: Maden serveres klokken otte. — “The food is served at eight.” morgenmaden means “the breakfast.” It is the definite singular form of morgenmad (“breakfast”), formed with the definite ending -en. The ending marks the noun as definite; it does not by itself mean a numerical quantity. Example: Morgenmaden er klar. — “The breakfast is ready.” i morgen tidlig means “tomorrow morning,” literally expressing “early tomorrow.” i morgen means “tomorrow,” and tidlig adds the idea of an early time, which in this context is naturally rendered as “morning.” Example: Vi rejser i morgen tidlig. — “We are leaving tomorrow morning.” Together, Hvor asks for the location, serveres makes the question passive, morgenmaden identifies the definite meal being served, and i morgen tidlig sets the time. The whole utterance therefore means: “Where is breakfast served tomorrow morning?”

8. I spisesalen tæt på receptionen.

   In the dining room near reception.

   spisesalen

   dining room

   tæt på

   near

   receptionen

   reception

   More detail

   spisesalen means “the dining room” here. The base noun is spisesal, and spisesalen is its definite singular form: spisesal → spisesalen. The ending -en marks definiteness for this common-gender noun; it does not itself mean “one.” Danish compounds are written as one word, so spisesalen is not a separate article plus noun. Example: Vi spiser i spisesalen. — “We eat in the dining room.” tæt på is a reusable location expression meaning “near” or “close to.” It introduces the place used as the reference point. In this sentence, the reference point is receptionen, so the dining room is near reception. The expression is written as two words and should be learned as a unit for this meaning. Example: Hotellet ligger tæt på stationen. — “The hotel is near the station.” receptionen means “the reception” here. Its base noun is reception, and receptionen is the definite singular form: reception → receptionen. As with spisesalen, the ending -en marks a definite common-gender noun. The form identifies reception as a specific place rather than introducing an indefinite reception. Together, I spisesalen gives the location “in the dining room,” and tæt på receptionen adds the reference point “near reception.” The whole utterance therefore means: “In the dining room near reception.” The initial I is the Danish preposition for “in” in this location phrase.