Preparing for a Stormy Commute | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Der kan komme en storm, mens jeg er på vej på arbejde.

   A storm may hit during my commute.

   Der kan

   there may be

   komme

   come; arrive

   storm

   storm

   mens

   while

   jeg er

   I am

   på vej

   on the way

   arbejde

   work

   More detail

   Der kan introduces a possibility: in this sentence, “there may be …”. Der is an existential or presentational subject used to introduce what may happen; it does not identify a person or object. Kan is the present form of kunne and expresses possibility here, not ability. With a following infinitive, the pattern is der kan + infinitive = “there may be …” or “ … may happen.” Komme is the infinitive of komme (“come”). After the modal kan, Danish uses the infinitive, so kan komme means “may come.” In this context, komme describes the storm arriving or occurring, rather than someone physically coming. Useful forms include komme (infinitive), kommer (present), and kom (past). Storm means “storm.” The full noun phrase is en storm; en marks the noun phrase as indefinite, while the sentence presents the storm as a possible event rather than asserting that it is already occurring. For example: Der kommer en storm. — “A storm is coming.” Mens means “while” and introduces a situation occurring during the time of another situation. It links the possible storm with the speaker’s travel time: mens + clause means “while …”. Jeg er means “I am.” Jeg is the first-person singular pronoun “I.” Er is the present form of være (“be”); unlike English, this present form is used with different subjects rather than changing to a separate first-person form. For example: Jeg er hjemme. — “I am at home.” På vej is a common expression meaning “on the way” or “in transit.” It describes someone’s journey or movement toward a destination. In this sentence, it is part of the larger expression på vej på arbejde, “on the way to work.” Arbejde means “work” or “job.” In på arbejde, it refers to work as the destination or activity, and the preceding på vej makes the whole expression mean “on the way to work.” For example: Hun er på vej på arbejde. — “She is on her way to work.” Putting the parts together, Der kan komme en storm says that a storm is a possible arriving or occurring event. Mens jeg er på vej på arbejde locates that possibility in the time when the speaker is commuting. The complete meaning is: “A storm may hit during my commute.”

2. Hvis du er nødt til at tage af sted, så tag tidligere af sted, og vær fleksibel med din rute.

   If you have to travel, leave earlier and keep your route flexible.

   Hvis

   if

   er nødt til

   have to

   tage af sted

   leave

   tidligere

   earlier

   tag

   leave

   vær

   be

   fleksibel

   flexible

   rute

   route

   More detail

   Hvis introduces a condition: it means “if” and places the following situation inside a conditional clause. A reusable pattern is Hvis [condition], så [result]. Example: Hvis du er træt, så hvil. — “If you are tired, rest.” er nødt til is the present-tense expression for being obliged or having no choice but to do something. It is followed by at plus an infinitive: er nødt til at + verb. Here, er is the present form of være; nødt belongs to the fixed expression and is not the form of the following verb. Example: Jeg er nødt til at gå. — “I have to go.” tage af sted is an idiomatic verb construction meaning to leave or set off. tage is the infinitive, used here after at; af sted completes the construction. Example: Vi tager af sted nu. — “We are leaving now.” tidligere means “earlier” here. It is the comparative form related to tidligt (“early”), so it compares the departure time with a reference time, such as the usual or planned time. It does not specify an exact number of minutes. tag is the singular imperative of tage. The imperative gives a direct instruction: Tag af sted! — “Leave!” In the sentence, tag is separated from af sted by tidligere, but together they form the instruction to leave earlier. vær is the singular imperative of være, “be.” It introduces the state or quality requested in the second instruction. Example: Vær rolig. — “Be calm.” fleksibel is an adjective meaning “flexible.” In vær fleksibel, it describes the person addressed after the imperative vær. Danish adjectives can have different forms in other grammatical environments, but fleksibel is the form used here with this singular addressee. rute means “route.” In din rute, din means “your,” so the route belongs to the person addressed. The phrase fleksibel med din rute presents the route as something to adjust or choose flexibly; it does not require one particular route. Together, Hvis du er nødt til at tage af sted means “If you have to leave/travel.” så tag tidligere af sted gives the instruction to leave earlier, and og vær fleksibel med din rute adds a second instruction: remain flexible about your route. The whole utterance is therefore: “If you have to travel, leave earlier and keep your route flexible.”

3. Jeg er nødt til at tage på kontoret.

   I need to go to the office.

   er nødt til

   need to; have to

   tage

   take; go

   kontoret

   the office

   More detail

   er nødt til means “need to” or “have to” and expresses necessity. The observed form er is the present-tense form of være (“be”), but the full construction være nødt til at + infinitive is what expresses being required to do something. For example: Jeg er nødt til at arbejde. — “I have to work.” tage is the infinitive after at. In this sentence, tage is used in the travel/movement sense “go” or “travel,” rather than the object-taking sense “take.” The context also contains tage af sted, a related expression meaning “leave” or “set off,” but the fixed sentence uses tage with på kontoret to express going to the office. For example: Vi tager hjem. — “We are going home.” kontoret means “the office.” It is the definite singular form of kontor (“office”); the ending -et marks this form as definite. The noun itself does not state how many offices exist in the wider situation; it identifies the office intended here. For example: Kontoret er lukket. — “The office is closed.” Together, Jeg er nødt til at tage på kontoret. means “I need to go to the office.” Jeg is “I,” er nødt til marks the necessity, at tage gives the action, and på kontoret specifies the destination. The pattern Jeg er nødt til at + infinitive can be reused for other necessary actions.

4. Men jeg kan komme tilbage, før stormen bliver kraftigere.

   But I can come back before it gets stronger.

   Men

   but

   jeg kan

   I can

   komme

   come

   tilbage

   back

   før

   before

   stormen

   the storm

   bliver

   gets

   kraftigere

   stronger

   More detail

   Men means “but” and links this utterance to a contrasting idea. It is a coordinating conjunction and does not change the form of the following words. jeg kan means “I can.” jeg is the first-person singular pronoun “I”; its form does not change according to the gender of a person. kan is the present form of kunne, used here for ability or possibility. A useful pattern is jeg kan + infinitive: Jeg kan komme. — “I can come.” komme is the infinitive “come.” After the modal verb kan, the following verb stays in the infinitive rather than taking a present-tense ending. komme tilbage is a reusable combination meaning “come back,” with tilbage specifying return to an earlier place or situation. tilbage means “back” or “again to the previous place or situation.” Here it belongs with komme, so komme tilbage means “come back,” not merely “come.” før means “before” and introduces a time clause. Here, før stormen bliver kraftigere means “before the storm gets stronger”: the coming back is placed earlier than the storm’s increase in strength. før can introduce a time clause with another subject, as here. stormen means “the storm.” The base form is storm (“storm”), and stormen is its singular definite form, literally “the storm.” The definite ending is part of the noun form; it is not a separate word before the noun. bliver is the present form of blive, “become” or “get.” In this clause it describes a change, so bliver kraftigere means “gets stronger.” Danish present-tense forms do not change for the subject’s person or number: jeg bliver and stormen bliver both use bliver, although their meanings are “I become” and “the storm becomes.” kraftigere is the comparative form of kraftig, meaning “strong” or “powerful.” The comparison chain is kraftig — “strong,” kraftigere — “stronger,” and kraftigst — “strongest.” Here it describes the storm’s increasing strength or intensity. Example: Vinden bliver kraftigere. — “The wind gets stronger.” Together, jeg kan komme tilbage says “I can come back,” and før stormen bliver kraftigere sets the time relation “before the storm gets stronger.” With Men at the beginning, the complete utterance means: “But I can come back before it gets stronger.” In this fixed meaning, “it” refers to the storm expressed by stormen; Danish names that subject explicitly in the subordinate clause.

5. Tag vandtætte sko på, og undgå gader, der normalt bliver oversvømmet.

   Wear waterproof shoes and avoid any streets that usually flood.

   Tag … på

   put on

   vandtætte

   waterproof

   sko

   shoes

   undgå

   avoid

   gader

   streets

   bliver oversvømmet

   get flooded

   More detail

   Tag ... på is a reusable Danish pattern meaning “put on” when referring to clothing or something worn on the body. Tag is the imperative of tage (“to take”), and på is a particle whose position after the object creates the meaning “put on.” The object can come between them: Tag jakken på. — “Put the jacket on.” Here the object is vandtætte sko. vandtætte describes the shoes as waterproof. Its base form is vandtæt; vandtætte is the form used with a plural noun such as sko here. The word is built from vand (“water”) and tæt (“tight/sealed”), but learn vandtæt as the adjective “waterproof.” sko means “shoes.” It is plural here; Danish uses the same visible form sko for both singular indefinite and plural indefinite, so the translation and sentence context identify the intended plural meaning. Vandtætte sko therefore means “waterproof shoes.” undgå means “avoid.” Here it is the imperative used in the second coordinated command, and it has the same form as the infinitive. The commands are coordinated in Tag ... på, og undgå ... — “Put ... on, and avoid ...”. A useful example is Undgå isen. — “Avoid the ice.” gader means “streets.” It is the plural indefinite form of gade (“street”). The word is the object of undgå, so the command concerns avoiding streets, not merely noticing them. bliver oversvømmet means “get flooded.” bliver is the present-tense form of blive (“become/get”), and oversvømmet is the past participle of oversvømme (“flood”). Together they describe a change into a flooded state. In gader, der normalt bliver oversvømmet, der introduces a relative clause referring to the streets, and normalt means “usually.” The relative clause therefore identifies streets that usually get flooded. A comparable example is Vejen bliver oversvømmet. — “The road gets flooded.” The sentence combines the clothing command Tag vandtætte sko på with the coordinated command undgå gader. The relative clause der normalt bliver oversvømmet specifies which streets to avoid. The complete meaning is: “Wear waterproof shoes and avoid any streets that usually flood.”

6. Undergangen nær stationen bliver ofte oversvømmet ved kraftig regn.

   The underpass near the station often floods in heavy rain.

   Undergangen

   the underpass

   nær

   near

   stationen

   the station

   bliver

   becomes

   ofte

   often

   oversvømmet

   flooded

   ved

   in; under a condition

   kraftig

   heavy

   regn

   rain

   More detail

   Undergangen means “the underpass” here. The base noun is undergang “underpass”; the ending -en marks the definite singular form, roughly “the underpass.” Danish uses this form when the noun is presented as a specific, identifiable place. Example: En undergang = “an underpass”; undergangen = “the underpass.” nær means “near” and introduces a location: nær stationen means “near the station.” It is a useful preposition for stating proximity. Example: Skolen ligger nær parken. = “The school is near the park.” stationen means “the station.” Its base form is station, and -en marks definite singular: en station = “a station,” stationen = “the station.” In this utterance, it is the place used as the reference point for the underpass’s location. bliver is the present-tense form of blive, “to become” or “to get.” Here it combines with oversvømmet to describe the underpass becoming flooded or ending up flooded. The form bliver also occurs in present-tense constructions such as Det bliver koldt. = “It is getting cold.” ofte means “often.” It describes frequency and modifies the flooding event, so the sentence presents this as something that happens repeatedly, not just once. Example: Det regner ofte om efteråret. = “It often rains in the autumn.” oversvømmet means “flooded.” It is the past participle of oversvømme, “to flood,” and appears here with bliver in a construction describing a change into a flooded state. Compare bliver oversvømmet = “becomes/is flooded” with er oversvømmet = “is flooded,” where er presents the state without expressing the change into it. Example: Kælderen bliver oversvømmet. = “The basement becomes flooded.” ved means “in” or “under” when it introduces the condition in which something happens. In ved kraftig regn, it marks heavy rain as the condition associated with the flooding. This is not the directional meaning “by” in this sentence. Example: Ved stærk vind lukker broen. = “In strong winds, the bridge closes.” kraftig means “heavy” here, describing the intensity of the rain. Its base form is kraftig; in this phrase it is the attributive form before the noun regn. A related comparative is kraftigere, “heavier/stronger,” as in kraftigere regn = “heavier rain.” regn means “rain.” It is commonly used as a mass noun, so this phrase does not count individual instances of rain. Kraftig regn means “heavy rain”; the adjective specifies intensity rather than a type of rain. Together, Undergangen nær stationen identifies the place: “the underpass near the station.” bliver ofte oversvømmet says that this place repeatedly becomes flooded, and ved kraftig regn gives the condition: “in heavy rain.” The complete meaning is: “The underpass near the station often floods in heavy rain.”

7. Tag hovedvejen i stedet, selv om det tager lidt længere tid.

   Take the main road instead, even if it adds a little time.

   Tag

   take

   hovedvejen

   the main road

   i stedet

   instead

   selv om

   even if

   tager

   takes

   lidt

   a little

   længere

   longer

   tid

   time

   More detail

   Tag is the imperative of tage, “to take.” In this sentence it gives a direct instruction to choose a route. The present-tense form of the same verb is tager, which appears later. Example: Tag bussen! — “Take the bus!” hovedvejen means “the main road.” Its base noun is hovedvej; -en marks a definite singular common-gender noun, so hovedvejen is specifically “the main road,” not simply “a main road.” Example: Hovedvejen er åben. — “The main road is open.” i stedet is a fixed adverbial expression meaning “instead.” It marks the suggested choice as an alternative to another option. Example: Vi går i stedet. — “We are walking instead.” selv om introduces a concessive subordinate clause. Here it presents a possible condition that does not change the recommendation, matching “even if.” Example: Selv om det regner, går vi. — “Even if it rains, we are going.” tager is the present-tense form of tage. In the expression det tager ... tid, it means that something requires or uses a certain amount of time, rather than describing physically taking an object. Example: Det tager fem minutter. — “It takes five minutes.” lidt means “a little” or “slightly.” Here it modifies the comparison længere, making the increase small: “a little longer.” Example: Vent lidt. — “Wait a little.” længere is the comparative form of lang, “long”: lang → længere → længst (“long” → “longer” → “longest”). In længere tid, it compares the required duration with another, understood duration. Example: Denne vej er længere. — “This road is longer.” tid means “time.” It is a common-gender noun, but the expression tage tid normally appears without an article when talking about duration: det tager tid — “it takes time.” Example: Jeg har tid. — “I have time.” Together, Tag hovedvejen i stedet means “Take the main road instead.” The clause selv om det tager lidt længere tid adds the concession “even if it takes a little longer.” Thus the complete utterance is: “Take the main road instead, even if it adds a little time.”

8. Vil et vandtæt etui hjælpe med at beskytte min bærbare computer?

   Would a waterproof sleeve help protect my laptop?

   Vil et

   Would a

   vandtæt

   waterproof

   etui

   case or sleeve

   hjælpe

   help

   beskytte

   protect

   min

   my

   bærbare

   portable

   computer

   computer

   More detail

   Vil et opens a yes/no question: vil expresses “would” here, and et is the indefinite article used with the neuter noun etui. The article itself does not assert a numerical count. In a Danish yes/no question, the finite verb comes before the subject: Vil et vandtæt etui hjælpe...? Compare the declarative order Et vandtæt etui vil hjælpe.... vandtæt means “waterproof.” It describes etui and has this form with the singular neuter noun. Danish adjectives can take other forms in other environments; for example, vandtætte etuier means “waterproof cases.” Example: En vandtæt taske beskytter tøjet. — “A waterproof bag protects the clothes.” etui is a neuter noun meaning “case” or “sleeve.” Its indefinite singular form is et etui; its definite singular form is etuiet. Example: Jeg har et etui til brillerne. — “I have a case for the glasses.” hjælpe is the infinitive “to help.” The construction hjælpe med at means “help to do something” or “help with doing something”; the verb after at is also infinitive. Example: Kan du hjælpe med at flytte stolen? — “Can you help move the chair?” beskytte is the infinitive “to protect.” It names the action that the waterproof sleeve might help with. Its present-tense form is beskytter: Et etui beskytter computeren. — “A case protects the computer.” min means “my” and agrees with the possessed noun. Danish uses min with a singular common-gender noun, mit with a singular neuter noun, and mine with a plural noun. Here min agrees with computer, not with bærbare: min computer means “my computer,” while mit etui means “my case.” bærbare is the definite-form adjective related to bærbar, “portable.” With a possessive such as min, the noun phrase is definite, so the adjective takes the definite form: min bærbare computer. This phrase is the usual Danish expression for “my laptop,” literally “my portable computer.” Compare en bærbar computer (“a laptop”) with den bærbare computer (“the laptop”). computer means “computer.” It is a common-gender noun, which is why the phrase uses min rather than mit. Its definite singular form is computeren: Computeren er tung. — “The computer is heavy.” Together, Vil et vandtæt etui asks whether a waterproof case or sleeve would help, hjælpe med at beskytte expresses helping to protect, and min bærbare computer identifies the speaker’s laptop as what should be protected. The whole utterance means: “Would a waterproof sleeve help protect my laptop?”

9. Brug et, for forsinkelser er frustrerende, men beskadiget udstyr er værre.

   Use one, because delays are frustrating, but damaged equipment is worse.

   Brug

   use

   et

   one

   for

   because

   forsinkelser

   delays

   frustrerende

   frustrating

   men

   but

   beskadiget

   damaged

   udstyr

   equipment

   værre

   worse

   More detail

   Brug means “use” here and is the imperative of bruge. Danish imperatives commonly use the verb stem without the infinitive ending -e: bruge → brug. The form does not mark whether the addressee is singular or plural. Example: Brug telefonen. — “Use the phone.” et is used here on its own to mean “one” while referring to an understood neuter item. It is also the neuter indefinite article when it appears before a neuter noun, as in et etui (“a sleeve/case”). Do not treat the article as a numerical count in every sentence; its standalone use here is supported by the fixed translation “one.” for introduces the reason for the instruction: “because.” It links the command to the explanation that follows. Example: Jeg bliver hjemme, for det regner. — “I am staying home because it is raining.” forsinkelser means “delays” here. Its singular indefinite form is forsinkelse, and the plural form is forsinkelser. The sentence uses the plural to speak about delays generally, not one specified delay. frustrerende means “frustrating.” It is the present-participle adjective related to frustrere and describes something that causes frustration. In this sentence it describes forsinkelser. Example: Ventetiden er frustrerende. — “The waiting time is frustrating.” men means “but” and marks a contrast between the first evaluation and the second one. The first clause presents delays as frustrating; the following clause presents damaged equipment as an even worse situation. beskadiget means “damaged” here. It is an adjective formed from the past participle of beskadige (“damage”). Its neuter singular form is beskadiget, which agrees with neuter udstyr; plural or definite forms use beskadigede. Example: Et beskadiget etui skal udskiftes. — “A damaged sleeve/case must be replaced.” udstyr means “equipment.” It is a mass noun and is neuter in Danish, so the adjective before it takes the neuter form beskadiget. The noun itself does not need a plural ending when referring to equipment generally or as an uncounted amount. værre means “worse.” It is the comparative form of dårlig (“bad”): dårlig → værre → værst (“bad” → “worse” → “worst”). The comparative signals a comparison with the frustrating delays mentioned earlier; it does not by itself specify every detail of that comparison. Together, Brug et gives the instruction “Use one.” for forsinkelser er frustrerende gives its reason, “because delays are frustrating.” men beskadiget udstyr er værre adds the contrast, “but damaged equipment is worse.” The complete utterance therefore means: “Use one, because delays are frustrating, but damaged equipment is worse.”

10. Før jeg tager af sted, vil jeg sørge for, at batteriet på min telefon er fuldt opladet.

    Before I leave, I will make sure my phone battery is full.

    Før

    before

    tager af sted

    leave; depart

    vil jeg

    I will

    sørge for

    make sure

    batteriet

    the battery

    min

    my

    telefon

    phone

    fuldt opladet

    fully charged

    More detail

    Før introduces a time clause meaning “before.” Here it is followed by a complete clause, jeg tager af sted; compare the preposition use in a phrase such as før mødet (“before the meeting”). tager af sted is the fixed expression “leave” or “depart.” Its verb is tage (“take”), whose present form is tager; in this expression, the words together have the travel-related meaning “leave,” not the literal meaning “take away.” Example: Jeg tager af sted nu. — “I am leaving now.” vil jeg contains vil, the present form of ville. In this sentence, vil expresses a future intention, reflected by “will.” Because the sentence begins with the time clause, the main clause has verb–subject order: vil jeg, not jeg vil. Ville can also express “want” in other contexts, but the surrounding intention to ensure the battery is charged supports the future reading here. sørge for means “make sure” or “ensure.” This expression commonly introduces what is ensured with at: Jeg sørger for, at døren er låst. — “I will make sure that the door is locked.” The clause after at states the condition the speaker intends to ensure. batteriet is the definite form of the noun batteri, “battery.” The ending -et marks definiteness for this neuter noun: et batteri is “a battery,” while batteriet is “the battery.” In the fixed sentence, the battery is specified as belonging to the phone through på min telefon. min means “my” and is the singular possessive form used with a common-gender noun. Telefon is an en-word, so Danish uses min telefon; with a neuter singular noun, the corresponding form is mit, and with a plural noun it is mine. telefon means “phone.” Its base form is telefon; the phrase min telefon means “my phone.” Example: Min telefon er her. — “My phone is here.” fuldt opladet means “fully charged.” Opladet is related to the verb oplade, “charge,” and here describes the battery’s resulting state. Fuldt means “fully” here and modifies opladet; it is not the form agreeing directly with batteriet. Example: Batteriet er fuldt opladet. — “The battery is fully charged.” Together, Før jeg tager af sted means “Before I leave.” vil jeg sørge for, at introduces the speaker’s intended action of ensuring something, and batteriet på min telefon er fuldt opladet states what must be true: the battery of the speaker’s phone is fully charged. The complete meaning is “Before I leave, I will make sure my phone battery is full.”

11. Så kan du tjekke opdateringer, hvis ruten ændrer sig.

    Then you can check updates if the route changes.

    Så

    Then

    kan du

    you can

    tjekke

    check

    opdateringer

    updates

    hvis

    if

    ruten

    the route

    ændrer sig

    changes

    More detail

    Så means “then” here and links this sentence to the preceding situation. It can also mean “so” in other contexts, but “then” is the relevant sense here. kan du combines kan (“can”) with du (“you”). kan is the present-tense form of kunne; Danish modal verbs do not change for the subject, so the same kan can occur with other subjects. After a modal such as kan, the following lexical verb is normally in the infinitive. tjekke is the infinitive “to check.” With kan, it expresses ability or an available option: du kan tjekke = “you can check.” The infinitive form is also useful after other modal verbs, such as vil (“will/want to”) and skal (“shall/be going to/must”), though their meanings differ. opdateringer means “updates.” It is the plural of opdatering (“update”); the form here does not itself specify a definite set. For example, Jeg læser opdateringer means “I read updates.” hvis introduces a condition and means “if.” It begins the conditional clause hvis ruten ændrer sig, which states the condition under which the checking is relevant. ruten means “the route.” It is the definite singular form of rute (“route”): en rute = “a route,” ruten = “the route.” The ending -en marks definiteness for this noun; it is not a separate word. ændrer sig means “changes” in this sentence. ændrer is the present-tense form of ændre (“to change”), and sig is the reflexive form used when the subject is understood as undergoing the change itself. In the conditional clause, ruten is the subject, and ændrer sig describes the route changing. The same pattern can be used in Planen ændrer sig — “The plan changes.” Together, Så kan du tjekke opdateringer means “Then you can check updates.” The conditional clause hvis ruten ændrer sig adds the condition “if the route changes.” The complete utterance therefore means: “Then you can check updates if the route changes.”