Asking About Dietary Restrictions | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. En gæst har en kostrestriktion, så vi har brug for tydelige oplysninger, før vi bestiller.

   One guest has a dietary restriction, so we need clear information before ordering.

   gæst

   guest

   har brug for

   need

   kostrestriktion

   dietary restriction

   tydelige

   clear

   oplysninger

   information

   før

   before

   bestiller

   order

   More detail

   gæst means a guest or visitor. In En gæst, en presents one unspecified guest as the subject; it does not by itself assert a numerical count beyond this indefinite presentation. The plural is gæster. Example: En gæst kommer. — “A guest is coming.” har brug for is the reusable Danish construction at have brug for = “to need” or “to require.” The observed form har is the present-tense form of have, and brug for completes the construction; the following noun names what is needed. Example: Vi har brug for hjælp. — “We need help.” kostrestriktion is a dietary restriction. It is a compound noun: kost concerns diet or food, while restriktion means restriction. The plural is kostrestriktioner. Here, en kostrestriktion is what the guest has. tydelige means clear or unambiguous here. It is the plural form of the adjective tydelig, matching plural oplysninger. The adjective has forms such as tydelig (common singular), tydeligt (neuter singular), and tydelige (plural and definite contexts). Example: Vi har tydelige regler. — “We have clear rules.” oplysninger means information or details. It is a plural noun; the singular is oplysning. Danish commonly uses this plural form for information or pieces of information, so tydelige oplysninger means “clear information,” not necessarily several separately counted items. før means “before” and introduces a time relation. In før vi bestiller, it links the earlier need for information with the later action of ordering. It can also occur before a noun phrase, as in før mødet — “before the meeting.” bestiller is the present-tense form of bestille, “to order” or “to book,” and it means “order” in this sentence. The subject is vi (“we”), so the clause means “we order.” Danish present-tense verbs generally do not change form for different subjects: jeg bestiller is “I order,” while vi bestiller is “we order.” The sentence first states En gæst har en kostrestriktion: one guest has a dietary restriction. så then connects this fact to its consequence, vi har brug for tydelige oplysninger: we need clear information. Finally, før vi bestiller specifies that this need applies before we order. Together, the utterance means: “One guest has a dietary restriction, so we need clear information before ordering.”

2. Vi kan oplyse om ingredienserne.

   We can list the ingredients.

   Vi kan

   we can

   oplyse om

   inform about

   ingredienserne

   the ingredients

   More detail

   Vi kan means “we can” here. Vi is the first-person plural pronoun “we”; it does not identify any more specific group by itself. Kan is the present form of the modal verb kunne (“can, be able to”). Danish normally places an infinitive after this modal without an English-style “to”: Vi kan oplyse = “we can inform/provide information.” The same pattern is reusable with another verb, for example Vi kan hjælpe = “We can help.” oplyse om is a useful verb construction meaning “to inform about” or “to provide information about.” The observed form oplyse is the infinitive selected after kan; its present form is oplyser. The preposition om belongs to the information topic: oplyse om reglerne means “provide information about the rules.” ingredienserne means “the ingredients.” Its indefinite singular is en ingrediens (“an ingredient”), its indefinite plural is ingredienser, and ingredienserne is the definite plural. The ending -ne marks “the” with a plural noun in this form; it is attached to the noun rather than expressed as a separate word. For comparison, ingrediensen means “the ingredient” in the definite singular. Together, Vi kan oplyse om ingredienserne means “We can list the ingredients.” The sentence presents giving information about the ingredients as something the speaker’s group is able to do.

3. Men jeg bør nævne, at tilberedningsområderne er fælles.

   But I should mention that the prep areas are shared.

   Men

   But

   jeg bør

   I should

   nævne

   mention

   tilberedningsområderne

   the prep areas

   fælles

   shared

   More detail

   Men means “but” here and links this statement contrastively to the preceding information. It is a coordinating conjunction, so it does not change the word order of the clause that follows. Example: Jeg kommer, men jeg bliver ikke længe. — “I’m coming, but I won’t stay long.” jeg bør combines the pronoun jeg (“I”) with the modal verb bør (“should; ought to”). Bør is the present-tense form of burde; it expresses what is advisable or expected, not a simple ability. In this sentence, jeg is the subject and bør is followed by the infinitive nævne. Example: Du bør spørge. — “You should ask.” nævne is the infinitive of the verb meaning “to mention” or “to state briefly.” After the modal bør, Danish uses the infinitive without an infinitive marker: bør nævne. The form nævner is present tense when the verb is not governed by this modal. Example: Hun nævner navnet. — “She mentions the name.” tilberedningsområderne is the definite plural noun phrase meaning “the prep areas.” Its singular indefinite form is tilberedningsområde, its plural indefinite form is tilberedningsområder, and the ending -ne marks the definite plural: tilberedningsområderne. The noun refers to areas used for preparation or cooking; the form itself does not identify who uses them. Example: Restauranten har flere tilberedningsområder. — “The restaurant has several prep areas.” fælles means “shared” or “common” here. It is a descriptive adjective used after er to describe the prep areas. In this use, fælles has the same form with the plural noun as with a singular noun; the observed form is not an inflection of tilberedningsområderne. Example: Området er fælles. — “The area is shared.” Together, jeg bør nævne means “I should mention,” and at tilberedningsområderne er fælles introduces what should be mentioned: “that the prep areas are shared.” The complete utterance therefore means: “But I should mention that the prep areas are shared.”

4. Det hjælper; gæsten kan beslutte, hvilket risikoniveau der er acceptabelt.

   That helps; the guest can decide what level of risk is acceptable.

   Det

   That

   hjælper

   helps

   gæsten

   the guest

   kan

   can

   beslutte

   decide

   hvilket

   which

   risikoniveau

   risk level

   der

   clause-linking word

   er

   is

   acceptabelt

   acceptable

   More detail

   Det is a neuter singular demonstrative/pronoun. Here it means “that,” referring to the helpful matter already under discussion, as reflected in the fixed translation. Danish also uses det in other pronoun and subject patterns, so its exact referent must come from context. hjælper is the present-tense form of hjælpe, “to help.” The present form can describe help that is happening now or has a current effect. Example: Det hjælper meget. — “That helps a lot.” gæsten means “the guest.” It is the definite singular form of gæst: en gæst = “a guest,” gæsten = “the guest.” The ending -en marks definiteness for this common-gender noun; the singular form indicates one guest as the grammatical referent, while the ending itself is not a separate quantity word. kan is the present form of the modal verb kunne, “can / be able to.” A modal is followed by an infinitive without at, as in Hun kan beslutte. — “She can decide.” Here kan expresses the possibility or ability to decide, and beslutte names the action. beslutte is the infinitive “to decide.” After kan, it remains in the infinitive rather than taking a present-tense ending. Example: Gæsten kan vælge. — “The guest can choose.” hvilket means “which” or “what” before a neuter singular noun. It is the neuter singular form in the set hvilken (common gender), hvilket (neuter), and hvilke (plural). Here it agrees with risikoniveau, not with der or acceptabelt. risikoniveau means “risk level.” It is a compound noun made from risiko (“risk”) and niveau (“level”); the whole compound is the noun used here. Its neuter article is et: et risikoniveau. That noun class is why the adjective later has the neuter form acceptabelt. der is the invariant clause-linking word in the embedded question hvilket risikoniveau der er acceptabelt. It does not carry the neuter or singular marking of risikoniveau; hvilket and acceptabelt show the relevant agreement. This pattern is different from treating the whole clause as an ordinary relative clause: the sentence asks which level is acceptable. er is the present form of være, “to be.” The present form er is used across persons; it is not a special plural form here. Example: Niveauet er lavt. — “The level is low.” acceptabelt means “acceptable” here. It is the neuter singular form of the adjective acceptabel: en acceptabel løsning = “an acceptable solution,” et acceptabelt niveau = “an acceptable level.” The ending -t belongs to the adjective and reflects agreement with neuter risikoniveau; it is not an inflection on er. Together, Det hjælper means “That helps.” After the semicolon, gæsten kan beslutte means “the guest can decide.” The following embedded question, hvilket risikoniveau der er acceptabelt, means “what level of risk is acceptable.” The complete meaning is: “That helps; the guest can decide what level of risk is acceptable.”

5. Jeg beder køkkenet om at tjekke hver enkelt ingrediens i stedet for at gætte.

   I'll ask the kitchen to check each component instead of guessing.

   beder

   ask; request

   køkkenet

   the kitchen

   om at

   about/to doing something

   tjekke

   check

   hver enkelt

   each individual

   ingrediens

   ingredient

   i stedet for at

   instead of doing something

   gætte

   guess

   More detail

   beder is the present-tense form of bede, “to ask” or “to request.” The useful pattern is bede nogen om at gøre noget: ask someone or some group to do something. Bede is irregular: beder (present), bad (past), bedt (past participle). Example: Jeg beder ham om at vente. — “I ask him to wait.” køkkenet means “the kitchen” here. It is the definite form of the neuter noun et køkken: køkken is the base form, and køkkenet means “the kitchen.” The ending marks definiteness; it is not a separate word for staff. om at introduces what is being requested. In the pattern bede nogen om at + infinitive, om links the request to its content and at marks the following infinitive. Example: Hun beder os om at komme. — “She asks us to come.” tjekke is the infinitive “to check.” After at, it stays in the infinitive: at tjekke. The verb can also appear as tjekker in the present: Køkkenet tjekker ingrediensen. — “The kitchen checks the ingredient.” hver enkelt emphasizes the members one by one: “each individual.” Hver selects one member at a time, and enkelt adds the idea that every member is considered separately. Together with a singular noun, it forms the reusable pattern hver enkelt + noun: hver enkelt gæst — “each individual guest.” ingrediens means “ingredient.” Here it is singular because hver enkelt refers to one ingredient at a time; the full phrase is nevertheless about all the ingredients individually. Its plural is ingredienser. Example: Vi gennemgår hver ingrediens. — “We review each ingredient.” i stedet for at means “instead of doing something.” It contrasts the action named by the following infinitive with another action. The pattern is i stedet for at + infinitive: Hun spørger i stedet for at gætte. — “She asks instead of guessing.” gætte means “to guess.” It is an infinitive after at; its present form is gætter. Here it names the alternative to checking. Example: Jeg vil ikke gætte. — “I do not want to guess.” Together, Jeg beder køkkenet om at tjekke says that the speaker asks the kitchen to check. hver enkelt ingrediens specifies that the check should cover each ingredient individually, and i stedet for at gætte contrasts checking with guessing. Thus the complete utterance means: “I’ll ask the kitchen to check each component instead of guessing.”

6. Tag også saucer og toppings med, eftersom de er nemme at overse.

   Please include sauces and toppings too, since those are easy to miss.

   Tag … med

   include

   også

   too; also

   saucer

   sauces

   toppings

   toppings

   eftersom

   since

   de

   those

   nemme

   easy

   overse

   overlook; miss

   More detail

   Tag ... med is a discontinuous Danish construction based on tage (“take”). Here Tag is the imperative form; Danish does not mark the imperative for singular versus plural addressees. med contributes the idea of bringing or including something. Together, Tag ... med means “include ...” in this sentence. Example: Tag brødet med can mean “Bring/include the bread,” depending on the situation. også means “also” or “too”. Here it adds the sauces and toppings to what is already being considered; it does not itself identify a quantity. saucer means “sauces”. It is the indefinite plural of sauce. toppings is the plural noun “toppings”, used here for additional ingredients placed on food. The two nouns are joined by og (“and”) and are the things being included. eftersom introduces a reason and is naturally translated here as “since”. Example: Jeg bliver hjemme, eftersom jeg er syg means “I am staying home since I am ill.” de is a third-person plural pronoun. In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies it as referring to the sauces and toppings together. It is the subject of the following description, not the object of Tag ... med. nemme means “easy” here. It is the plural form of the adjective nem, agreeing with plural de. For an indefinite singular common-gender noun, the form is nem; with an indefinite singular neuter noun, it is nemt; nemme is used with plurals and also with definite noun phrases. Example: Opgaverne er nemme at løse means “The tasks are easy to solve.” overse means “overlook” or “miss”. It is the infinitive form, introduced here by at in the pattern nemme at overse, “easy to overlook”. This describes a risk of failing to notice or include the sauces and toppings; it does not say that they have actually been missed. Putting the parts together, Tag også saucer og toppings med asks the listener to include sauces and toppings as well. eftersom de er nemme at overse gives the reason: those sauces and toppings are easy to miss. The complete meaning is “Please include sauces and toppings too, since those are easy to miss.”

7. Jeg sørger for, at de tjekker dem hver for sig.

   I'll make sure they check those separately.

   Jeg sørger for

   I make sure

   tjekker

   check

   dem

   those

   hver for sig

   separately

   More detail

   Jeg sørger for means “I make sure” here. sørger is the present-tense form of sørge; with for at, the construction sørge for at ... means to ensure that something happens. Danish present-tense verbs generally do not change for the subject: jeg sørger, de sørger. Example: Jeg sørger for, at døren er lukket. — “I make sure that the door is closed.” tjekker is the present-tense form of tjekke, “to check.” In the utterance it describes the checking that the people referred to by de are to do. Danish does not add a separate present-tense ending for third-person plural, so de tjekker uses the same verb form as jeg tjekker. dem is the object form of the third-person plural pronoun. In this context, supported by the surrounding sentence and the fixed translation, it refers to the sauces and toppings. Compare the subject form de (“they”) with the object form dem (“them/those”): De tjekker dem. — “They check them.” hver for sig is a fixed construction meaning “separately” or “one by one.” It tells us that the items are checked individually rather than together. Example: Læs spørgsmålene hver for sig. — “Read the questions separately.” Together, Jeg sørger for, at ... introduces what the speaker will ensure: de tjekker dem hver for sig means “they check those separately.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I’ll make sure they check those separately.”

8. Så kan alle bestille uden at lægge pres på gæsten.

   Then everyone can order without putting pressure on the guest.

   Så

   Then

   kan alle

   everyone can

   bestille

   order

   uden at

   without …-ing

   lægge pres

   put pressure

   gæsten

   the guest

   More detail

   Så means “then” here and links this utterance to the preceding situation or conclusion. It can also mean “so” in other contexts, but “then” is the supported meaning here. kan alle: kan is the present-tense form of kunne, “can/be able to.” It is used with an infinitive to express ability or possibility: kan bestille = “can order.” kan does not change for the subject’s number or person. alle means “everyone” here and functions as the subject. With a different subject, the same pattern is reusable: Vi kan bestille = “We can order.” bestille is the infinitive “to order.” After the modal kan, Danish uses the infinitive without an extra infinitive marker: kan bestille, not a finite form after kan. The verb can also be used independently in other tenses, for example Jeg bestiller = “I order/I am ordering.” uden at introduces an action that is not carried out: “without doing …”. Danish places an infinitive after this construction. It is a reusable pattern: uden at tale = “without speaking.” Here, uden at does not itself include the meaning of “putting pressure”; that meaning comes from the following verb and noun. lægge pres: lægge is the infinitive “to put/place,” and pres is “pressure.” Together, lægge pres på nogen is the reusable expression “to put pressure on someone.” The preposition på identifies the person affected; in this sentence it is the following gæsten. gæsten means “the guest.” It is the definite singular form of gæst, “guest”: en gæst = “a guest,” gæsten = “the guest.” The ending -en marks definiteness for this noun; it does not itself state a number beyond the singular form shown here. Putting the parts together, Så kan alle bestille means “Then everyone can order.” uden at lægge pres på gæsten adds the condition that this happens without putting pressure on the guest. The complete meaning is: “Then everyone can order without putting pressure on the guest.”

9. Når jeg har oplysningerne, kommer jeg tilbage og gennemgår dem med jer.

   Once I have the details, I'll come back and walk you through them.

   Når

   when

   jeg har

   I have

   oplysningerne

   the details

   kommer … tilbage

   come back

   gennemgår

   walk through; review

   dem

   them

   med jer

   with you

   More detail

   Når introduces a time condition: “when.” In Når jeg har ..., the clause gives the point at which the main action will occur. Danish uses når for an expected or recurring time relation; da is commonly used for a single completed past event. jeg har means “I have.” har is the present form of have; it does not change for the subject’s gender or number. Here, the present form describes possession or availability of the details. Example: Jeg har tid. — “I have time.” oplysningerne means “the details” or “the information.” The base noun is oplysning; oplysninger is its plural, and the ending -ne marks definite plural: “the details.” The form refers to specific information already relevant in the situation, rather than an unspecified amount of information. kommer ... tilbage means “come back.” kommer is the present form of komme, and tilbage adds the return meaning. Danish present forms can also describe a planned or expected future action when the context makes that clear; here, the return is understood to happen after the speaker has the details. Example: Jeg kommer tilbage i morgen. — “I’ll come back tomorrow.” gennemgår means “goes through” or “reviews” in this sentence. Its base form is gennemgå; gennemgår is its present form. The verb is used when someone examines or explains items systematically. Example: Vi gennemgår planen. — “We go through the plan.” dem is the object form meaning “them.” Here it refers to the details, matching the plural object supplied by oplysningerne. Danish distinguishes subject de (“they”) from object dem (“them”): De læser dem. — “They read them.” med jer means “with you.” jer is the object form of the second-person plural pronoun, used when addressing more than one person; med expresses accompaniment. Example: Jeg taler med jer. — “I’m talking with you.” Together, Når jeg har oplysningerne means “Once I have the details.” The main clause, kommer jeg tilbage og gennemgår dem med jer, says that the speaker will come back and go through those details with the listeners. The Danish verbs are present forms, but the temporal clause and context give the whole utterance its future-oriented meaning: “Once I have the details, I’ll come back and walk you through them.”