Preparing for Changeable Hiking Weather | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Vejrudsigten for vandreturen ændrer sig hele tiden med sol og risiko for regnbyger.

   The forecast for the hike keeps changing, with sun and possible showers.

   Vejrudsigten

   the forecast

   vandreturen

   the hike

   ændrer sig

   changes

   hele tiden

   all the time

   sol

   sun

   risiko

   risk

   regnbyger

   showers

   More detail

   Vejrudsigten means “the forecast” here. It is the definite singular form of vejrudsigt (“weather forecast”): vejrudsigt → vejrudsigten. The ending -en is the definite singular ending for this noun. vandreturen means “the hike” here. It is the definite singular form of vandretur (“hike”): vandretur → vandreturen. The ending is part of the noun’s definite form. ændrer sig means “changes” or “keeps changing.” ændrer is the present-tense form of ændre (“change”), and sig is the reflexive pronoun used when the subject is the thing that changes. Danish present tense does not change for person: jeg ændrer, du ændrer, and den ændrer all use ændrer. Example: Planen ændrer sig. — “The plan changes.” hele tiden means “all the time” and emphasizes repeated or ongoing change. Together with ændrer sig, it gives the sense “keeps changing,” rather than describing just one change. sol means “sun.” In med sol, it names one of the weather conditions associated with the forecast. It is a bare noun here, not a noun with an overt indefinite article or definite ending; Danish commonly uses nouns without an article in such descriptions of conditions. risiko means “risk” here. The reusable pattern risiko for means “risk of,” and risiko for regnbyger expresses a risk or possibility of showers. for introduces what the risk concerns. regnbyger means “showers,” specifically rain showers. It is the plural of regnbyge (“rain shower”): regnbyge → regnbyger. The plural fits the general possibility expressed in risiko for regnbyger; it does not assert that showers actually occur. The sentence assembles as Vejrudsigten for vandreturen (“the forecast for the hike”) + ændrer sig hele tiden (“keeps changing all the time”) + med sol og risiko for regnbyger (“with sun and a risk of showers”). Thus, the intended meaning is: “The forecast for the hike keeps changing, with sun and possible showers.”

2. Tag flere lag tøj på, og tag en vandtæt jakke med.

   Wear layers and bring a waterproof jacket.

   Tag … på

   put on / wear

   flere

   several / more

   lag

   layers

   tøj

   clothes / clothing

   tag … med

   bring / take along

   vandtæt

   waterproof

   jakke

   jacket

   More detail

   Tag ... på is a reusable Danish pattern meaning “put on” or “wear.” Tag is the imperative of tage (“to take”), and på is a separable particle that appears after the object phrase here. This is an instruction to the listener, so the listener is understood as the person who should put the clothing on. Example: Tag skoene på. — “Put on the shoes.” flere means “several” here and modifies the plural noun lag. It is the comparative form associated with mange (“many”): mange = “many,” flere = “more/several,” flest = “most.” Here flere lag recommends multiple layers without specifying an exact number. lag means “layers” here. Its singular form is lag, and its plural form is also lag; in this phrase, flere helps show the plural meaning. Example: Tre lag er nok. — “Three layers are enough.” tøj means “clothes” or “clothing.” It is commonly used as a mass or collective noun, so lag tøj means “layers of clothing.” The noun tøj does not itself mean “layers”; lag supplies that meaning. tag ... med is another reusable pattern with the imperative of tage: it means “bring” or “take along.” Here med is separated from tag by the object phrase, so tag en vandtæt jakke med means “bring a waterproof jacket.” This contrasts with tag ... på, which means putting clothing on. Example: Tag en paraply med. — “Bring an umbrella.” vandtæt means “waterproof” and describes jakke. It is a compound adjective formed from vand (“water”) and tæt (“tight/sealed”), but its established meaning here is “waterproof.” In en vandtæt jakke, the adjective has its basic form before an indefinite common-gender singular noun. jakke means “jacket.” It is a singular common-gender noun. In en vandtæt jakke, en marks an indefinite singular noun phrase; the article itself is not a standalone numeric gloss, while the noun phrase refers to an unspecified jacket. Together, Tag flere lag tøj på instructs the listener to put on several layers of clothing. og connects this with tag en vandtæt jakke med, an instruction to bring a waterproof jacket. The complete meaning is: “Wear layers and bring a waterproof jacket.”

3. Stien er åben, men den højere del kan være mudret.

   The trail is open, but the higher section may be muddy.

   Stien

   the trail

   er

   is

   åben

   open

   den

   the

   højere

   higher

   del

   section

   kan være

   may be

   mudret

   muddy

   More detail

   Stien means “the trail” here. It is the definite singular form of sti (“trail”): en sti = “a trail,” stien = “the trail.” Danish commonly marks definiteness by an ending on the noun when no adjective comes before it. er is the present-tense form of være (“to be”). It connects the subject with a description: Stien er åben = “The trail is open.” åben means “open” here. It is the singular common-gender form agreeing with stien. The corresponding plural form is åbne: Dørene er åbne = “The doors are open.” den højere del means “the higher section.” In this noun phrase, den is the definite article used before a singular common-gender noun with a preceding adjective. Unlike the ending in stien, definiteness is expressed by the separate word den here. højere is the comparative form of høj (“high”): høj = “high,” højere = “higher,” højest = “highest.” It describes del, not stien. Example: Denne bakke er højere = “This hill is higher.” del means “part” or “section” in this context. Its base form is del; en del means “a part/section,” and delen means “the part/section” when no adjective comes before it. With the adjective before it, Danish uses den ... del for “the ... section.” kan være expresses possibility: kan is the present form of the modal verb kunne (“can/may”), and være is the infinitive “to be.” Here it means “may be,” not a definite prediction. Example: Det kan være svært = “It may be difficult.” mudret means “muddy.” It is the adjective describing the section’s possible condition. The sentence does not state that the section is certainly muddy; kan være presents this as a possibility. The sentence is assembled as Stien er åben (“The trail is open”), followed by men (“but”), then den højere del kan være mudret (“the higher section may be muddy”). Thus the complete meaning is: “The trail is open, but the higher section may be muddy.”

4. Vi bør gå langsomt, især på strækningerne ned ad bakke.

   We should take it slowly, especially on the downhill parts.

   Vi bør

   we should

   gå

   go; walk

   langsomt

   slowly

   især

   especially

   strækningerne

   the sections; the stretches

   ned ad bakke

   downhill

   More detail

   Vi bør means “we should.” Vi is the first-person plural subject, “we,” and bør is the present form of burde, expressing advice or what is advisable. Danish commonly places the infinitive after this modal: Vi bør vente means “We should wait.” gå is the infinitive of gå, “to go” or “to walk.” Here it describes moving along the trail, without specifying whether the movement is by walking rather than another mode. After bør, the infinitive is used without an infinitive marker: Vi bør gå. langsomt means “slowly.” It is an adverb describing how the movement should happen. It is related to the adjective langsom, “slow”; the -t form is used here adverbially. Compare gå langsomt (“move slowly”) with gå hurtigt (“move quickly”). især means “especially” and highlights one part of the situation as particularly important. It can introduce a specific place or circumstance: Vær især forsigtig her means “Be especially careful here.” strækningerne means “the sections” or “the stretches.” Its base form is strækning, “section” or “stretch”; strækninger is the plural, and the final -ne marks the definite plural, “the sections.” In this sentence, the word refers to stretches of the route. ned ad bakke is a fixed directional expression meaning “downhill” or “down a slope.” bakke can mean “hill” or “slope,” while the full expression describes a descending section rather than merely naming a hill. For example, Cyklen kører ned ad bakke means “The bicycle is going downhill.” Together, gå langsomt says to move slowly, and især på strækningerne ned ad bakke specifies where this caution is especially important: on the downhill stretches. The whole utterance therefore means that the group should proceed slowly, particularly on those descending parts of the route.

5. Hvis vejret bliver dårligt, kan vi vende om ved udsigtspunktet.

   If the weather turns bad, we can turn back at the viewpoint.

   Hvis

   if

   vejret

   the weather

   bliver

   becomes; gets

   dårligt

   bad

   kan vi

   we can

   vende om

   turn back

   udsigtspunktet

   the viewpoint

   More detail

   Hvis introduces a condition: “if.” It is reusable at the start of a conditional clause, as in Hvis du har tid, ... (“If you have time, ...”). vejret means “the weather” here. Its base noun is vejr; vejret is the definite singular form, with the definite ending -et. Danish nouns with et as their indefinite article use this kind of neuter agreement. bliver is the present form of blive, “become” or “get.” In this sentence it describes a change of state: the weather gets bad. A useful pattern is blive + adjective, such as blive træt (“get tired”). dårligt is the neuter singular form of the adjective dårlig, “bad.” It agrees with the neuter noun vejr: et dårligt vejr (“bad weather”). The adjective’s base form is dårlig; dårligt is not a form of the noun vejr. kan vi combines kan, the present form of the modal verb kunne (“can”), with the subject vi (“we”). After a subordinate clause beginning with Hvis, Danish main-clause word order places the finite verb before the subject: Hvis ..., kan vi .... This is a statement, not necessarily a question. After kan, the next verb normally stays in the infinitive without at, as in kan vi gå (“we can go”). vende om is a reusable verb-particle construction meaning “turn back” or “turn around.” The lexical verb is vende (“turn”), while om contributes the change of direction. Example: Vi vender om nu. — “We are turning back now.” udsigtspunktet means “the viewpoint.” Its base noun is the compound udsigtspunkt; the ending -et marks definite singular for this neuter noun. In the full sentence, the location is expressed by the surrounding phrase ved udsigtspunktet, “at the viewpoint.” Together, Hvis vejret bliver dårligt means “if the weather gets bad.” kan vi vende om means “we can turn back,” and ved udsigtspunktet specifies where that option applies: “at the viewpoint.” The complete utterance is therefore: “If the weather turns bad, we can turn back at the viewpoint.”

6. Lad os sige det, før vi starter, så ingen føler sig presset til at fortsætte.

   Let's say that before we start, so no one feels pressured to continue.

   Lad os

   let’s

   sige

   say

   det

   that

   før

   before

   vi

   we

   starter

   start

   så

   so that

   ingen

   no one

   føler

   feels

   sig

   oneself

   presset

   pressured

   til at

   to

   fortsætte

   continue

   More detail

   Lad os is the reusable Danish way to propose an action: “let’s …”. It combines the imperative lad of lade with the object pronoun os (“us”). The following infinitive states the proposed action: Lad os vente = “Let’s wait.” sige is the infinitive of sige, “say.” In this sentence it follows Lad os, so the pattern is Lad os + infinitive: Lad os begynde = “Let’s begin.” det is the neuter singular pronoun meaning “it” or “that.” Here it refers to the thing the speakers propose to say; the sentence does not specify what that thing is. Danish pronouns have grammatical properties of their own, so this form should not be treated as a general replacement for every noun. før introduces a time clause meaning “before.” It is followed here by vi starter, “we start.” Example: Ring, før du går = “Call before you leave.” vi means “we” and is the subject of starter. starter is the present-tense form of starte, “start.” Danish present tense can describe a future event when the time is clear from context, as it is after før here. Example: Vi starter klokken otte = “We start at eight.” så introduces the intended result or purpose: “so that.” In this sentence, the purpose of saying it before starting is expressed by the clause that follows. Do not treat this så as the comparative word “so” in a phrase such as “so big”; its function here is to connect clauses. ingen means “no one” or “nobody.” It is the subject of the following clause and presents the people concerned as having no individual who experiences the stated situation. Example: Ingen kommer i dag = “No one is coming today.” føler is the present-tense form of føle, “feel.” With sig, the pattern føle sig + adjective describes how someone feels: Hun føler sig træt = “She feels tired.” sig is a third-person reflexive pronoun. Here it refers back to the subject ingen, so the people described feel the pressure themselves. Danish sig does not show a separate masculine, feminine, or plural form; the subject supplies the reference. Compare the first-person form in Jeg føler mig træt = “I feel tired.” presset means “pressured” here. It is the common-gender singular form used with the singular subject ingen; the corresponding plural form is pressede, as in De føler sig pressede = “They feel pressured.” The adjective-like form describes the state experienced after føler sig. til at is the pattern used before an infinitive when someone is pressured, encouraged, or otherwise directed to perform an action: presset til at svare = “pressured to answer.” The til belongs to this construction, while at marks the following infinitive. fortsætte is the infinitive of fortsætte, “continue.” Here it means continuing an activity or process that is understood from the situation; the sentence does not identify that activity more precisely. Example: Hun vælger at fortsætte = “She chooses to continue.” Together, Lad os sige det proposes saying the unspecified “that.” før vi starter places this saying before the start, and så ingen føler sig presset til at fortsætte gives the purpose: doing so is intended to prevent anyone from feeling pressured to continue. The complete meaning is therefore: “Let’s say that before we start, so no one feels pressured to continue.”

7. Skal vi minde gruppen om ikke at have hverdagssko på?

   Should we remind the group not to wear casual shoes?

   Skal vi

   Should we

   minde … om

   remind … about

   gruppen

   the group

   ikke

   not

   have … på

   wear

   hverdagssko

   casual shoes

   More detail

   Skal vi combines the modal verb skal with the pronoun vi. Here skal is the present-tense form used to ask about a proposed action, while vi means “we.” After a modal verb, the following verb is normally in the infinitive. minde ... om is a reusable verb construction meaning “remind someone about something” or “remind someone to do something.” The observed form minde is the infinitive required after skal; its present-tense form is minder. The person being reminded can come between the verb and om, as in minde gruppen om .... gruppen is the definite singular form of gruppe, “group”: en gruppe = “a group,” gruppen = “the group.” The ending -en marks common-gender definiteness here; it does not express a numerical count by itself. ikke is the ordinary Danish negation “not.” In ikke at have ... på, it negates the following infinitive clause, giving the meaning “not to wear ...” have ... på is a Danish construction for wearing or having clothing, footwear, or another item on one’s body. have is the infinitive “have”; the present form is har. The particle på is separated from the verb here because the footwear comes between them. For example, Hun har støvler på means “She is wearing boots.” hverdagssko is a compound noun: hverdag means “everyday life” and sko means “shoes,” so the compound refers here to casual or everyday shoes. In this sentence, the surrounding construction presents the shoes as what the group should not wear. The form sko can be singular or plural in Danish, with context identifying the intended number; the fixed translation makes the plural meaning “shoes” clear. Together, Skal vi asks whether the speakers should take an action. minde gruppen om identifies that action as reminding the group, and ikke at have hverdagssko på states what the group is to be reminded not to wear. The complete meaning is: “Should we remind the group not to wear casual shoes?” This is a reusable suggestion pattern: Skal vi minde [someone] om at ...? or Skal vi minde [someone] om ikke at ...?

8. Bed dem om at have ordentlige sko på, for mudrede stier kan være glatte.

   Ask them to wear proper shoes; muddy trails can be slippery.

   Bed dem om at

   ask them to

   have … på

   have ... on; wear

   ordentlige

   proper

   sko

   shoes

   mudrede

   muddy

   stier

   trails

   kan være

   can be

   glatte

   slippery

   More detail

   Bed dem om at begins with bed, the imperative of bede (“to ask”). Danish imperative forms normally do not mark whether one person or several people are being addressed. dem is the object pronoun “them,” and om at introduces the requested action: bede nogen om at ... means “ask someone to ...”. Example: Hun bad ham om at vente. — “She asked him to wait.” have ... på is a reusable Danish construction meaning “to have something on,” and therefore “to wear” in this context. have is the infinitive/base form of have; på is separated from it here because the clothing noun comes between them. Example: Jeg har en jakke på. — “I am wearing a jacket.” ordentlige is the plural form of the adjective ordentlig, meaning “proper” or “suitable” here. The adjective agrees with the plural noun sko; it is not the form that marks the noun’s number. The useful adjective forms are ordentlig (common-gender singular), ordentligt (neuter singular), and ordentlige (plural or definite contexts). In this sentence, ordentlige sko means “proper/suitable shoes.” sko means “shoes” here. Danish uses sko for both singular and plural; the surrounding form supplies the number in this phrase: the adjective ordentlige is plural. The singular can also be en sko (“a shoe”), while to sko means “two shoes.” mudrede is the plural form of the adjective mudret, “muddy.” It describes stier, so mudrede stier means “muddy trails.” The adjective’s plural form is mudrede, while singular forms include mudret and mudret in the neuter; the exact singular form depends on the noun’s grammatical gender. stier is the plural of sti, “trail” or “path.” The phrase mudrede stier is an indefinite plural noun phrase: it refers to muddy trails without specifying a particular set of trails. kan være combines the modal verb kan (“can”) with the infinitive være (“be”). This expresses possibility or a possible property, not certainty: the trails can be slippery. After a modal verb, Danish uses the infinitive without at. Example: Vejen kan være våd. — “The road can be wet.” glatte is the plural form of the adjective glat, “slippery” here. It agrees with plural stier; it does not change the noun. The comparison chain is glat (“slippery”), glattere (“more slippery”), and glattest (“most slippery”). Together, Bed dem om at have ordentlige sko på means “Ask them to wear proper shoes.” The second clause, for mudrede stier kan være glatte, gives the reason: “because muddy trails can be slippery.” The full utterance is therefore a direct request to ask those people to wear suitable shoes, followed by a possible safety reason.

9. En påmindelse om at pakke i aften ville være en hjælp.

   A packing reminder tonight would help.

   påmindelse

   reminder

   om at pakke

   about packing

   i aften

   tonight

   ville være

   would be

   hjælp

   help

   More detail

   påmindelse is a noun meaning “reminder.” Its useful forms are en påmindelse (an indefinite reminder), påmindelsen (the reminder), and påmindelser (reminders). In this sentence, it is the head noun of the whole subject. om at pakke uses om followed by at plus an infinitive. Together, this gives “about/to pack”: the reminder concerns packing. pakke is the infinitive “pack.” For example, Husk at pakke. means “Remember to pack.” i aften is the time expression “tonight” or “this evening.” Here it belongs with pakke, so it specifies when the packing is to happen: “pack tonight.” ville være expresses a hypothetical or conditional “would be.” ville is the relevant form of vil, while være is the infinitive of the verb whose present form is er. For example, Det ville være godt. means “That would be good.” hjælp is the noun “help.” In en hjælp, the indefinite article and noun together mean “a help” or “something helpful.” The noun’s definite form is hjælpen, and its plural is hjælper. The opening En is the indefinite article used with the common-gender singular noun påmindelse; here it does not specifically assert a counted quantity. The sentence therefore builds as En påmindelse (“a reminder”) + om at pakke i aften (“to pack tonight”) + ville være (“would be”) + en hjælp (“a help”). The complete meaning is: “A reminder to pack tonight would be a help,” matching the fixed translation “A packing reminder tonight would help.”

10. Send den tidligt nok til, at alle kan forberede sig.

    Send it early enough for everyone to prepare.

    Send

    send

    den

    it

    tidligt

    early

    nok

    enough

    til, at

    for … to

    alle

    everyone

    kan

    can

    forberede

    prepare

    sig

    oneself

    More detail

    Send is the imperative of sende, “to send.” The imperative gives a direct instruction and normally has no written subject: Send beskeden. — “Send the message.” den means “it” here as a third-person singular object pronoun. In Danish, den is used for a singular common-gender noun; det is used for a singular neuter noun. The sentence and translation identify the object only as “it,” not what it is. tidligt means “early” here. It is the adverbial form related to the adjective tidlig (“early”), describing when the sending should happen. Compare tidligt — “early” with sent — “late”: Kom tidligt. — “Come early.” nok means “enough.” Together, tidligt nok means “early enough”: the sending should happen no later than the time needed for the following purpose. nok follows the adverb it limits in this pattern. til, at introduces the purpose or result condition “for … to” in this sentence. The pattern ... nok til, at ... links a sufficient degree or time with what that makes possible: Hun taler højt nok til, at alle kan høre hende. — “She speaks loudly enough for everyone to hear her.” alle means “everyone” here. It refers to all members of the relevant group without stating how many people are in that group. It can function as a plural subject: Alle kommer. — “Everyone is coming.” kan is the present-tense form of the modal verb kunne, “can” or “be able to.” With an infinitive, it expresses ability or possibility: Alle kan hjælpe. — “Everyone can help.” The infinitive following kan does not take at. forberede is the infinitive of forberede, “to prepare.” After the modal kan, it remains in the infinitive: kan forberede — “can prepare.” sig is the reflexive pronoun used with a third-person subject, singular or plural. Here it refers back to alle, so forberede sig means “prepare oneself/themselves,” naturally translated as “prepare.” Danish uses other reflexive forms for first and second person, such as mig (“myself”) and dig (“yourself”): Jeg forbereder mig. — “I prepare myself.” The utterance assembles as Send den (“Send it”) + tidligt nok (“early enough”) + til, at alle kan forberede sig (“for everyone to prepare”). The complete meaning is: “Send it early enough for everyone to prepare.” It is a direct instruction; the context indicates that the item to send is a reminder, but the sentence itself leaves the object as the pronoun den.