Writing Practical Example Sentences | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Jeg husker nye ord, når jeg studerer.

   I remember new words during study time.

   Jeg

   I

   husker

   remember

   nye

   new

   ord

   words

   når

   when

   studerer

   study

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” here: it is the first-person singular subject. Danish uses jeg for this role; the subject of the later subordinate clause is also jeg, although that occurrence was not selected as a separate phrase entry. husker means “remember” in the present tense. Its base form is huske; the present form is used for a current or generally applicable activity. Example: Jeg husker navnet. — “I remember the name.” nye means “new” and describes ord. The adjective is in its plural form because ord is plural. The singular indefinite forms are ny with a common-gender noun and nyt with a neuter noun; nye is used with plural nouns, as in nye bøger (“new books”). ord means “words” here. Its singular form is ord, and its plural form is also ord, so the plural meaning is understood from the surrounding grammar and meaning. Example: Jeg lærer nye ord. — “I learn new words.” når means “when” and introduces a subordinate clause describing the time or situation of the main clause. A reusable pattern is når + subject + present-tense verb: Jeg læser, når jeg har tid. — “I read when I have time.” studerer means “study” in the present tense. Its base form is studere; the form does not change for the first-person singular subject jeg. In the clause når jeg studerer, jeg is the subject and studerer is the verb. Together, Jeg husker nye ord means “I remember new words.” The clause når jeg studerer adds when this happens: “when I study” or, compatibly with the fixed translation, “during study time.” The complete utterance therefore means “I remember new words when I study.”

2. Men jeg glemmer dem, når jeg prøver at tale.

   But I forget them when I try to speak.

   Men

   but

   glemmer

   forget

   dem

   them

   når

   when

   prøver

   try

   at tale

   to speak

   More detail

   Men links this sentence to a contrasting idea: “but.” It does not itself express the forgetting; it marks the contrast between remembering words and forgetting them in this situation. glemmer is the present-tense form of glemme, “to forget.” Danish verbs do not change their form for different subjects in the present tense, so jeg glemmer means “I forget,” while de glemmer means “they forget.” The present form can describe a current or recurring situation, as it does here. dem is an object pronoun meaning “them.” Here, the fixed translation identifies the objects as the words being forgotten. It is the object of glemmer, whereas jeg is the person doing the forgetting. Danish object pronouns differ from subject pronouns: compare de (“they”) with dem (“them”). når introduces a time condition or recurring situation: “when.” The clause after it explains when the forgetting happens. It can introduce a complete clause, as in når jeg prøver ... (“when I try ...”). prøver is the present-tense form of prøve, “to try” or “to attempt.” As with glemmer, the present form is not changed for the subject: jeg prøver is “I try,” and hun prøver is “she tries.” at tale consists of at, the infinitive marker, and tale, “to speak.” The infinitive marker is used here after prøver: prøve at + infinitive means “try to” do something. The verb tale remains in its infinitive form after at; it is not the finite verb carrying the subject agreement. Together, jeg glemmer dem means “I forget them,” and når jeg prøver at tale specifies the recurring situation: “when I try to speak.” With Men at the beginning, the complete utterance means: “But I forget them when I try to speak.”

3. Ordene er måske ikke knyttet til situationer, hvor du faktisk ville bruge dem.

   The words may not be connected to situations where you would actually use them.

   Ordene

   the words

   måske

   maybe

   ikke

   not

   knyttet

   connected

   til

   to

   situationer

   situations

   hvor

   where

   du

   you

   faktisk

   actually

   ville

   would

   bruge

   use

   dem

   them

   More detail

   Ordene means “the words” here. It is the definite plural of ord (“word”): ord = “word,” ordene = “the words.” Danish marks definiteness on the noun with the ending -ene in this plural form. Example: Jeg skriver ordene. — “I write the words.” måske means “maybe” or “perhaps.” It presents the statement as uncertain. Example: Måske kommer hun. — “Maybe she is coming.” ikke supplies the negation “not.” Here, måske ikke makes the possibility negative: “may perhaps not” or, naturally, “may not.” Example: Jeg kommer ikke. — “I am not coming.” knyttet means “connected” in this sentence. It is the past participle of knytte (“connect,” “tie”), used with er in the expression er knyttet til (“is/are connected to”). In this utterance, knyttet describes the relationship between the words and situations. Example: Navnet er knyttet til stedet. — “The name is connected to the place.” til means “to” in the relationship knyttet til. The reusable pattern is være knyttet til noget — “be connected to something.” situationer means “situations.” It is the indefinite plural of situation; the plural ending is -er. Example: Vi taler om forskellige situationer. — “We talk about different situations.” hvor introduces the part describing those situations and means “where.” In this use, it refers to a situation in which an action takes place, not necessarily a physical location. Example: Det er en situation, hvor jeg må vente. — “It is a situation where I have to wait.” du is the subject pronoun “you” for one person. Danish uses du for singular informal “you”; the plural form is I. Example: Du bruger ordet. — “You use the word.” faktisk means “actually” or “in fact.” Here it emphasizes that the use is real or genuine: situations where you would really use the words. Example: Jeg bruger det faktisk. — “I actually use it.” ville is the form of ville used for “would” in this clause. Together with the infinitive bruge, ville bruge means “would use.” Ville can also have other uses, including a past form related to “want,” so its meaning is determined by the construction here. Example: Jeg ville læse bogen. — “I would read the book.” bruge means “use.” It is the infinitive after the modal verb ville; Danish keeps the infinitive without an English-style marker such as “to” in this construction. Example: Jeg vil bruge denne liste. — “I will use this list.” dem means “them” as an object pronoun. It refers back to ordene in the supplied meaning, so the sentence says that you would use the words. De is the corresponding subject form, while dem is used as an object. Example: Jeg ser dem. — “I see them.” Together, Ordene er måske ikke knyttet til situationer says “The words may not be connected to situations.” The relative clause hvor du faktisk ville bruge dem specifies those situations: they are situations where you would actually use the words. Thus the complete utterance means, “The words may not be connected to situations where you would actually use them.”

4. Jeg skriver normalt oversættelsen og gennemgår den samme liste senere.

   I usually write the translation and review the same list later.

   Jeg

   I

   skriver

   write

   normalt

   usually

   oversættelsen

   the translation

   gennemgår

   review

   den samme

   the same

   liste

   list

   senere

   later

   More detail

   Jeg means “I” here and is the first-person singular subject. Danish subject pronouns include jeg “I,” du “you,” and vi “we.” Danish present-tense verbs generally do not change form according to the subject. skriver is the present-tense form of skrive, “to write.” It can describe a current action or a regular habit, and normalt makes the habitual reading clear here. Example: Jeg skriver en besked. — “I am writing a message.” normalt means “usually” or “normally.” It is an adverb, so it describes how often the writing happens rather than changing form to agree with a noun. Example: Hun kommer normalt senere. — “She usually comes later.” oversættelsen means “the translation.” The base noun is oversættelse, “translation”; -en marks the definite singular form of this common-gender noun. Danish often puts definiteness in a suffix: en oversættelse is “a translation,” while oversættelsen is “the translation.” gennemgår is the present-tense form of gennemgå, meaning “to review” or “to go through” something carefully. The form is the same for different subjects in the present tense: Jeg gennemgår, hun gennemgår, and vi gennemgår. Example: Vi gennemgår teksten. — “We review the text.” den samme is the reusable pattern “the same” before a singular common-gender noun. Here den is the common-gender singular form used in this definite noun phrase, while samme expresses identity with something already understood. samme has the same form with singular and plural nouns, although the accompanying determiner can differ. Example: De bruger den samme bog. — “They use the same book.” liste means “list.” It is a common-gender noun: en liste is “a list,” and listen is “the list.” In this utterance, liste follows den samme, so the phrase means “the same list.” senere means “later,” referring to a later time. It is an adverb and does not change for number or gender. Example: Jeg ringer senere. — “I will call later.” The sentence has the pattern Jeg + present-tense verb + frequency adverb + object, followed by og and another present-tense verb with its object and a time adverb: “I usually write the translation and review the same list later.” The subject Jeg applies to both skriver and gennemgår; the repeated subject is understood after og. oversættelsen is the object of skriver, while den samme liste is the object of gennemgår, and senere places the reviewing at a later time.

5. Prøv at tilføje en enkel eksempelsætning til hvert nyttigt ord.

   Try adding one simple example sentence for each useful word.

   Prøv

   try

   at tilføje

   to add

   enkel

   simple

   eksempelsætning

   example sentence

   hvert

   each

   nyttigt

   useful

   ord

   word

   More detail

   Prøv is the imperative of prøve, “to try.” The imperative addresses the listener directly: Prøv igen. — “Try again.” Here it introduces an action the listener is being encouraged to carry out. at tilføje means “to add.” at marks the infinitive, and tilføje is the verb itself; the form does not change for the subject in the infinitive. In a request, Danish commonly uses Prøv at + infinitive: Prøv at læse højt. — “Try reading aloud.” enkel means “simple.” It is the singular indefinite form used with the common-gender noun eksempelsætning: en enkel sætning. The neuter form is enkelt, as in et enkelt ord — “a single/simple word.” eksempelsætning means “example sentence.” It is a compound noun formed from eksempel (“example”) and sætning (“sentence”), but it functions as one noun. Its common-gender indefinite article is en: en eksempelsætning; its definite form is eksempelsætningen, “the example sentence.” hvert means “each/every” in the neuter singular form. It agrees with ord, which is a neuter noun: et ord, so hvert ord. Compare hver dag — “each day,” where dag is common gender. Hvert does not itself assert the number one; it distributes the instruction over the members of a set. nyttigt means “useful” here. It is the neuter singular form of the adjective nyttig, because it describes the neuter noun ord: et nyttigt ord. With a common-gender noun, use nyttig: en nyttig sætning — “a useful sentence.” ord means “word.” Its indefinite singular form is et ord; its plural is ord, so context or a determiner can distinguish singular from plural. In this sentence, hvert makes the intended reading singular and distributive: each useful word is treated individually. Together, Prøv at tilføje gives the reusable pattern “Try to add.” en enkel eksempelsætning is the object being added, and til hvert nyttigt ord specifies that one such sentence should be associated with each useful word. The complete meaning is: “Try adding one simple example sentence for each useful word.”

6. Jeg kan skrive sætninger om arbejde, indkøb eller beskeder til venner.

   I can write sentences about work, shopping, or messages to friends.

   Jeg kan

   I can

   skrive

   write

   sætninger

   sentences

   om

   about

   arbejde

   work

   indkøb

   shopping

   beskeder

   messages

   til

   to

   venner

   friends

   More detail

   Jeg kan expresses the speaker’s ability or possibility: “I can.” kan is the present form of kunne and is used with a following infinitive. Danish modal verbs such as kan normally take the infinitive without at: Jeg kan skrive means “I can write,” not “I can to write.” skrive means “write” here. It is the infinitive form; present tense is skriver: Jeg skriver en besked means “I write/am writing a message.” After kan, the infinitive skrive stays unchanged. sætninger means “sentences.” Its singular indefinite form is en sætning, and its plural indefinite form is sætninger: Jeg skriver korte sætninger means “I write short sentences.” The plural form shows that the utterance refers to sentences generally, without stating a specific number. om introduces what the sentences are about. Here it connects sætninger with the following topics. Danish also uses om in other patterns, such as en bog om historie, “a book about history.” arbejde means “work” in this context. It is commonly used as a non-count topic noun, as in Jeg taler om arbejde, “I talk about work.” The form can also occur in other meanings or constructions, so its exact interpretation comes from this context. indkøb means “shopping” or “shopping activities.” It is a noun used here as a topic alongside arbejde. For example, Jeg skriver om indkøb means “I write about shopping.” beskeder means “messages.” Its singular indefinite form is en besked; beskeder is the plural indefinite form. For example, Jeg sender beskeder means “I send messages.” til means “to” here and introduces the recipients of the messages. A useful pattern is en besked til ..., “a message to ...”; til can also have other meanings in Danish, depending on the construction. venner means “friends.” Its singular indefinite form is en ven, and its plural indefinite form is venner. In beskeder til venner, it refers to friends as the intended recipients, without specifying which friends or how many. Together, sætninger om arbejde, indkøb eller beskeder til venner means “sentences about work, shopping, or messages to friends.” The conjunction eller links the three possible topics: work, shopping, and messages to friends. With Jeg kan skrive, the complete utterance means: “I can write sentences about work, shopping, or messages to friends.”

7. De situationer vil gøre det lettere at huske betydningen under en samtale.

   Those situations will make the meaning easier to recall during conversation.

   De

   those

   situationer

   situations

   vil

   will

   gøre

   make

   det

   it

   lettere

   easier

   huske

   recall

   betydningen

   the meaning

   under

   during

   samtale

   conversation

   More detail

   De means “those” here and points to plural situations. Danish de is the plural form; the form itself does not identify which situations without context. Compare singular den/det in contexts where Danish uses those forms. situationer is the plural of situation (“situation”). The ending -er is a common Danish plural ending for nouns, but plural formation is not identical for every noun. Example: flere situationer = “several situations.” vil is the present form of ville and expresses future expectation here: “will.” Danish commonly uses vil followed by an infinitive to describe what is expected to happen. Do not confuse this use with vil meaning “wants” in a context about intention. gøre is the infinitive of gør and means “make” here. After vil, Danish uses the infinitive: vil gøre = “will make.” The construction gøre det + adjective means “make it + adjective,” as in the fixed sentence. det is a neuter-form pronoun meaning “it” in this construction. Here it is a grammatical object in gøre det lettere; it does not by itself identify a separate concrete thing. Danish has the related common-gender form den, but the choice between det and den depends on the relevant grammatical structure and referent, not simply on English “it.” lettere is the comparative of let (“easy”): let → lettere (“easier”). In gøre det lettere, it describes the resulting degree of ease: “make it easier.” The comparative does not state exactly how much easier. huske is the infinitive of husker and means “to recall” or “to remember.” The sequence lettere at huske is a reusable pattern meaning “easier to remember”: Det er lettere at huske. = “It is easier to remember.” betydningen means “the meaning.” It is the definite form of betydning: betydning = “meaning,” betydningen = “the meaning.” The definite ending is attached to the noun itself; it is not a separate word equivalent to English the. under means “during” in this time expression. It introduces the period in which the remembering is intended to occur. Example: under mødet = “during the meeting.” samtale means “conversation.” In under en samtale, the noun is indefinite: en samtale = “a conversation.” The article en marks the relevant noun form as indefinite; it does not by itself assert a numerical count. Together, De situationer is “those situations,” and vil gøre det lettere at huske betydningen says they “will make it easier to recall the meaning.” under en samtale specifies that this recalling is to take place during a conversation. The complete utterance therefore means: “Those situations will make the meaning easier to recall during conversation.”

8. Jeg burde nok studere færre ord og bruge dem oftere.

   I should probably study fewer words and use them more often.

   Jeg burde

   I should

   nok

   probably

   studere

   study

   færre

   fewer

   ord

   words

   bruge

   use

   dem

   them

   oftere

   more often

   More detail

   Jeg burde combines the first-person pronoun Jeg (“I”) with burde, the modal form meaning “should” or “ought to” here. burde is followed directly by an infinitive, without a separate infinitive marker: Jeg burde studere means “I should study.” This modal does not change for person or number. Example: Hun burde hvile. — “She should rest.” nok means “probably” in this sentence. It softens the statement into a likely recommendation rather than removing the obligation-like meaning of burde. In this position, it follows the modal: burde nok — “should probably.” studere is the infinitive “to study.” After burde, it remains in the infinitive form. The same form can be used after other Danish modal verbs; for example, Jeg vil studere. — “I want to study.” færre means “fewer” and is the comparative form used with countable things. Its basic comparison is få (“few”), færre (“fewer”), færrest (“fewest”). Here it modifies ord, so færre ord means “fewer words,” not simply “less” in an uncountable sense. ord means “words” here. Its singular form is et ord (“a word”), while the plural is ord; the plural does not add an ending in this form. The phrase færre ord therefore uses a plural noun after the comparative færre. bruge means “to use.” It is another infinitive coordinated with studere by og (“and”). The modal burde applies to both infinitives, so the structure is burde [studere ...] og [bruge ...]: “should study ... and use ...” The repeated modal is naturally omitted before the second verb. Example: Du burde læse og skrive. — “You should read and write.” dem is the plural object pronoun “them.” Here, the fixed translation identifies its referent as the words, so bruge dem means “use them.” It is an object form, contrasting with the subject form de (“they”): De bruger dem. — “They use them.” oftere means “more often.” It is the comparative form of the frequency adverb ofte (“often”): ofte, oftere, oftest — “often,” “more often,” “most often.” It modifies the using, so the intended meaning is to use the words more frequently. Together, Jeg burde nok gives “I should probably”; studere færre ord gives “study fewer words”; and og bruge dem oftere adds “and use them more often.” The complete utterance is therefore: “I should probably study fewer words and use them more often.”

9. Gentagen brug vil hjælpe ordene med at blive en del af dit aktive ordforråd.

   Repeated use will help the words become part of your active vocabulary.

   Gentagen

   repeated

   brug

   use

   vil

   will

   hjælpe

   help

   ordene

   the words

   med at blive

   to become

   en del af

   part of

   dit

   your

   aktive

   active

   ordforråd

   vocabulary

   More detail

   Gentagen means “repeated” here and describes brug. It is the common-gender singular form of gentagen; compare gentaget with a neuter singular noun and gentagne with plural or definite forms. Example: gentagen øvelse means “repeated practice.” brug is the noun “use.” It is common gender, and this sentence uses its singular indefinite form. The related verb is bruge, “to use”; for example, Jeg bruger ordet ofte means “I use the word often.” vil expresses what is expected to happen in the future: “will.” It is followed here by the infinitive hjælpe. Danish vil can also express wanting in other contexts, but the fixed translation supports the future reading here. hjælpe is the infinitive “to help.” After vil, Danish uses the infinitive without an extra infinitive marker: vil hjælpe means “will help.” The form hjælper is the present-tense form, as in Det hjælper (“It helps”). ordene means “the words.” It is the definite plural of ord (“word”): et ord is “a word,” ord is the plural, and ordene is “the words.” The definite ending is part of the noun form. med at blive is a construction meaning “to become” in this sentence. After hjælpe med at, Danish uses at plus an infinitive: hjælpe med at lære means “help with learning” or “help to learn.” Here blive means “become,” not simply “be.” en del af means “part of.” The noun del is common gender, so the phrase uses en; af introduces the larger whole that the part belongs to. Example: Det er en del af planen means “It is part of the plan.” dit means “your” before a neuter singular noun. It agrees with ordforråd, not with the person who owns it. Compare din before a common-gender singular noun and dine before a plural noun. The possessor is not otherwise specified in the sentence. aktive means “active” here. The adjective has the -e form after the possessive in dit aktive ordforråd, as part of the noun phrase. Its base form is aktiv; compare aktivt with a neuter singular noun in contexts without this definite-style adjective form, and aktive in plural or definite-style contexts. Example: aktive deltagere means “active participants.” ordforråd means “vocabulary.” It is a neuter noun: et ordforråd means “a vocabulary.” In dit aktive ordforråd, the possessive dit identifies the vocabulary as belonging to “you,” while aktive specifies that it is active vocabulary. Together, Gentagen brug means “repeated use.” vil hjælpe says that this use will help, and ordene med at blive en del af dit aktive ordforråd says that the words will become part of your active vocabulary. The complete meaning is: “Repeated use will help the words become part of your active vocabulary.”

10. Jeg vil vælge et lille udvalg og skrive personlige eksempler efter undervisningen.

    I will choose a small set and write personal examples after class.

    Jeg vil

    I will

    vælge

    choose

    lille

    small

    udvalg

    selection

    skrive

    write

    personlige

    personal

    eksempler

    examples

    efter

    after

    undervisningen

    class

    More detail

    Jeg vil is a useful Danish pattern for a first-person intention or expected future action: Jeg vil + infinitive. Here vil is followed by the infinitive vælge, so the meaning is “I will choose,” not simply “I want” in isolation. Example: Jeg vil læse. — “I will read.” vælge is the infinitive “to choose.” Its present-tense form is vælger: Jeg vælger et emne. — “I choose/am choosing a topic.” The infinitive follows the modal vil in this sentence. lille means “small.” It is the base form of the adjective; Danish adjectives can change according to the noun’s grammatical form. In et lille udvalg, lille is the form used with the neuter singular noun phrase introduced by et. Example: et lille hus — “a small house.” udvalg means “selection” or “set.” In this sentence it refers to a set of items being chosen, without specifying what the items are. The indefinite phrase et lille udvalg means “a small set,” while udvalget would be “the set/selection” with the noun in definite form. skrive is the infinitive “to write.” It is coordinated with vælge under the same vil: Jeg vil vælge ... og skrive ... means “I will choose ... and write ... .” Example: Jeg vil skrive en note. — “I will write a note.” personlige means “personal.” It is the plural form of the adjective personlig, agreeing with plural eksempler. Example: personlige mål — “personal goals.” The adjective describes the examples; it does not mean that the examples themselves are people. eksempler means “examples.” It is the plural of eksempel; the singular indefinite form is et eksempel, and the plural definite form is eksemplerne, “the examples.” Here personlige eksempler means “personal examples.” efter is a preposition meaning “after” when it places one event later than another. In this sentence it introduces undervisningen, so the writing happens after class. Example: efter mødet — “after the meeting.” undervisningen means “the class” or, more literally in some contexts, “the teaching.” The base noun is undervisning; the ending -en marks singular definite form: undervisning → undervisningen. The fixed translation identifies the intended sense here as “class.” Together, Jeg vil vælge et lille udvalg gives “I will choose a small set,” and og skrive personlige eksempler adds the coordinated action “and write personal examples.” The time phrase efter undervisningen places both intended actions after class. The complete meaning is: “I will choose a small set and write personal examples after class.”

11. Den rutine burde gøre din træning i ordforråd mere praktisk.

    That routine should make your vocabulary practice more practical.

    Den

    that

    rutine

    routine

    burde

    should; ought to

    gøre

    make; do

    træning

    training; practice

    ordforråd

    vocabulary

    mere praktisk

    more practical

    More detail

    Den means “that” here, matching the fixed translation. It is a singular common-gender demonstrative used before rutine; the noun itself is not marked definite with a suffix in this phrase. Danish also uses den in other definite-noun patterns, so its exact function comes from the construction here. rutine means “routine”. It is a common-gender noun: en rutine, rutinen. In Den rutine, the demonstrative identifies the routine as “that routine”. burde expresses an expectation or recommendation such as “should” or “ought to”. It is the past-form counterpart of bør, but in this sentence it does not simply place the event in the past; it marks what is expected to happen. After this modal, Danish uses the infinitive without at. gøre is the infinitive form, while gør is its present-tense form. It means “make” here, not merely “do”. The pattern gøre noget ... can describe causing something to have a particular quality. Example: Det gør arbejdet lettere. — “It makes the work easier.” træning means “practice” or “training” here. It is a common-gender noun: en træning, træningen. The possessive din modifies this noun and means “your”; in this use it is the form used with a singular common-gender noun. ordforråd means “vocabulary”. It is a neuter noun: et ordforråd, ordforrådet. In træning i ordforråd, i links the practice to its content or area, giving “vocabulary practice”. mere praktisk means “more practical”. praktisk is the base form of the adjective, and mere forms its comparative rather than changing the adjective itself: praktisk → mere praktisk → mest praktisk (“practical” → “more practical” → “most practical”). Here the comparison concerns the practice becoming more useful or workable. Together, Den rutine identifies the subject as “that routine”; burde gøre expresses the expectation that it will cause a change; and din træning i ordforråd mere praktisk describes the result. The whole utterance therefore means: “That routine should make your vocabulary practice more practical.”