Setting a boundary around advice | Learn Danish in English

Sentence explanations

1. Jeg sætter pris på vores samtaler, men jeg har brug for at sætte en grænse.

   I value our conversations, but I need to set a boundary.

   sætter pris på

   value; appreciate

   vores samtaler

   our conversations

   men

   but

   har brug for at

   need to

   sætte

   set; put

   en grænse

   a boundary

   More detail

   sætter pris på is a fixed Danish expression meaning “value” or “appreciate.” Its first verb is sætter, the present-tense form of sætte (“set”); in this expression, the literal idea of setting a price on something has an idiomatic meaning. The preposition på belongs to the expression: sætte pris på noget means “appreciate something.” In vores samtaler, vores means “our” and indicates possession by the speaker together with others; it does not itself state how many possessors there are. Samtaler means “conversations” and is the plural of samtale (“conversation”). The plural form refers here to the conversations being valued. men connects two contrasting parts and means “but.” It does not change the tense or add the meaning of “need”; that meaning comes from the following construction. har brug for at is a reusable way to say “need to.” Har is the present form of have, while brug is a noun in the expression have brug for (“have need for”). The at introduces the infinitive that follows: have brug for at + verb. For example, Jeg har brug for at hvile means “I need to rest.” Sætte is the infinitive of sætter. It means “set” or “put” here, but its exact English translation depends on what follows. After at, it remains in the infinitive: at sætte (“to set”). In en grænse, grænse means “boundary” or “limit.” It is the singular indefinite form after en; the noun belongs to the common-gender class. The plural is grænser. En marks an indefinite singular noun here, but it does not by itself specify a numerical count beyond the singular grammatical form. Together, Jeg sætter pris på vores samtaler means “I value our conversations.” Men jeg har brug for at sætte en grænse adds the contrast “but I need to set a boundary.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I value our conversations, but I need to set a boundary.”

2. Jeg lytter. Jeg vil hellere forstå end gætte.

   I'm listening. I'd rather understand than guess.

   lytter

   listen

   vil hellere

   would rather

   forstå

   understand

   end

   than

   gætte

   guess

   More detail

   lytter is the present-tense form of lytte, “to listen.” In Jeg lytter, it means “I am listening” or “I listen,” with the intended ongoing meaning supplied by the translation. The form lytter is used with both first-person singular and third-person singular subjects; the subject Jeg identifies the form here as first person. vil hellere is a useful preference pattern: vil hellere + infinitive means “would rather + verb.” vil is the present form of ville (“to want” or “will”), while hellere means “rather” in a preference comparison. For example: Jeg vil hellere vente. — “I would rather wait.” forstå is the infinitive “to understand.” After vil hellere, it remains in the infinitive: vil hellere forstå means “would rather understand.” The infinitive is also used after other Danish modal or auxiliary-like verbs, such as kan forstå (“can understand”). end links the two alternatives in a comparison and means “than” here. The pattern hellere A end B means “rather A than B.” It does not itself express the preference; it connects the preferred option with the alternative. gætte is the infinitive “to guess.” It follows end in the second alternative, so end gætte means “than guess.” Its infinitive form matches forstå because both verbs are the alternatives after the preference construction. Together, Jeg lytter. means “I’m listening.” The next sentence uses vil hellere forstå end gætte: the speaker prefers understanding to guessing. The complete utterance is therefore “I’m listening. I’d rather understand than guess.”

3. Når der kommer råd med det samme, føler jeg, at der ikke rigtig er blevet lyttet til mig.

   When advice comes right away, I feel like I haven't really been heard.

   Når

   when

   kommer

   comes; arrives

   råd

   advice

   med det samme

   right away

   føler

   feel

   ikke rigtig

   not really

   lyttet til mig

   listened to me

   More detail

   Når introduces a time condition: “when …”. It is useful for recurring situations, not only for one past event. Example: Når jeg er træt, drikker jeg te. — “When I am tired, I drink tea.” kommer is the present-tense form of komme, “to come” or “to arrive”. Danish present-tense verbs generally have the same form for different persons and numbers, so kommer itself does not mark third-person singular. Here, the surrounding clause presents råd as what comes. Example: Jeg kommer i morgen. — “I am coming tomorrow.” råd means “advice” here. It can also mean “a piece of advice” in a suitable context. The fixed sentence presents advice generally rather than asserting a specific count. Råd is also the plural of et råd (“a piece of advice”), so context determines whether it means advice as a mass or several pieces of advice. med det samme is a fixed adverbial expression meaning “immediately” or “right away”. It modifies the timing of kommer: the advice comes without delay. Example: Hun svarer med det samme. — “She replies right away.” føler is the present-tense form of føle, “to feel”. Here it describes the speaker’s current reaction or impression, and jeg identifies the speaker as the experiencer. Example: Jeg føler mig træt. — “I feel tired.” In that example, mig is part of the expression “feel tired”; in the fixed sentence, the following at clause states what the speaker feels. ikke rigtig means “not really” in this sentence. ikke negates the clause, while rigtig softens the negation rather than simply adding a separate event. The combination presents the speaker’s feeling as “I have not really been heard,” not as a strong claim that listening was entirely absent. lyttet til mig contains the participle lyttet, from lytte, “to listen”, followed by the preposition til and the pronoun mig, “me”. Danish uses lytte til nogen for listening to someone; til is part of the verb’s usual construction. The form lyttet itself does not mark the listener’s person or gender. Example: Der blev lyttet til hende. — “She was listened to.” Together with the surrounding words, der ikke rigtig er blevet lyttet til mig is a passive perfect construction. der is a formal grammatical subject used to present the event; it does not identify a person or object here. er blevet combines the present form of være with blevet, the participle of blive, and presents the listening event as having occurred before or up to the speaker’s present feeling. til mig marks the person listened to, so the fixed meaning is “I have not really been heard/listened to.” The connector at introduces this clause as the content of føler. The whole utterance has this structure: Når + the situation der kommer råd med det samme, followed by the reaction føler jeg and its content at der ikke rigtig er blevet lyttet til mig. Thus it means: “When advice comes right away, I feel like I haven’t really been heard.”

4. Jeg mente det som hjælp, men jeg kan godt se, hvordan det blev modtaget.

   I meant to help, but I can see how it landed.

   Jeg

   I

   mente

   meant

   det

   it

   hjælp

   help

   men

   but

   kan godt se

   can see

   hvordan

   how

   blev modtaget

   was received; landed

   More detail

   Jeg is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” Danish uses jeg for the speaker regardless of the speaker’s gender. Example: Jeg forstår. — “I understand.” mente means “meant” here. It is the past-tense form of mene, “to mean” or “to think,” and states what the speaker intended. Example: Jeg mente det ikke sådan. — “I did not mean it that way.” det is the neuter singular pronoun “it.” Here it is the object of mente; the fixed translation supports “it,” but the sentence does not identify a more specific noun referent. The same form can also refer to a neuter noun when the context supplies one. Example: Jeg så det. — “I saw it.” hjælp is the noun “help.” In som hjælp, it is a bare noun used to present something as help or as intended to help; this construction does not assert a numeric count. Example: Det var en stor hjælp. — “It was a great help.” men means “but” and connects two contrasting parts. The first part gives the speaker’s intention; the second acknowledges the way the result was received. kan godt se is a reusable Danish way to say “can see” or, in this context, “can understand.” kan is the present form of kunne, “can/to be able to,” while godt is an adverb that makes the acknowledgement affirmative, roughly “can indeed.” The following verb stays in the infinitive after kan: Jeg kan se det. — “I can see it.” hvordan means “how” and introduces a clause describing the way something was received or interpreted. It differs from hvad, “what,” which asks about a thing or content rather than the manner or outcome. blev modtaget means “was received” and matches “landed” in the fixed translation. It is a passive construction: blev is the past form of blive, “become/be,” and modtaget is the past participle of modtage, “receive.” The passive presents the reception of det without naming who received it. Example: Beskeden blev godt modtaget. — “The message was well received.” Together, Jeg mente det som hjælp says “I meant it as help,” identifying the speaker’s intention. men jeg kan godt se adds “but I can see,” and hvordan det blev modtaget specifies how it was received or landed. The complete utterance therefore means: “I meant to help, but I can see how it landed.”

5. Nogle gange har jeg brug for spørgsmål, før du kommer med forslag.

   Sometimes I need questions before suggestions.

   Nogle gange

   sometimes

   har … brug for

   need

   spørgsmål

   questions

   før

   before

   kommer med

   come with

   forslag

   suggestions

   More detail

   Nogle gange means “sometimes.” It is a time expression that can be placed at the beginning of a sentence to describe an occasional situation. Example: Nogle gange læser jeg om aftenen. — “Sometimes I read in the evening.” har ... brug for is the Danish construction for “need.” Its reusable pattern is [subject] har brug for [something]. The subject jeg appears between har and brug for here: jeg har brug for .... har is the present form of have; Danish uses har with different subjects, while the infinitive is have. In this construction, the meaning is need rather than simple possession. spørgsmål means “questions” here. It is the plural reading supported by the fixed translation. The form is notable because both singular indefinite et spørgsmål and plural indefinite spørgsmål have the same spelling; the article or surrounding context distinguishes them. Example: Jeg har et spørgsmål. — “I have a question.” før means “before” and introduces a time clause. The clause after it states the event that must occur later: før ... = “before ...”. kommer med means “come with” here, with kommer as the present form of komme. The construction komme med + something can mean bringing, presenting, or proposing something; in this utterance, it refers to presenting suggestions. Example: Hun kommer med en idé. — “She comes with an idea” / “She proposes an idea.” forslag means “suggestions” here. Danish uses forslag for both singular indefinite et forslag and plural indefinite forslag; et forslag means “a suggestion,” while bare forslag can mean “suggestions.” Together, the first part expresses an occasional need: the speaker needs questions. The clause introduced by før sets the time condition for the other action: the suggestions are presented after, not before, the questions. The complete meaning is “Sometimes I need questions before you come with suggestions.”

6. Det er en rimelig anmodning, og det kan jeg respektere.

   That's a fair request, and I can respect it.

   Det er

   That is / It is

   rimelig

   fair; reasonable

   anmodning

   request

   det

   it

   kan jeg

   I can

   respektere

   respect

   More detail

   Det er introduces the first clause. Here the opening det helps form the reusable pattern Det er ..., meaning “That/It is ...”; er is the present form of være (“to be”). rimelig means “fair” here, in the sense of reasonable or justified. It is an adjective modifying anmodning, a common-gender singular noun introduced by en. Danish adjectives commonly show this distinction: en rimelig ..., but et rimeligt ...; in the plural, rimelige is used. The adjective’s base form is rimelig, not the noun’s form. anmodning is the noun “request.” Its plural is anmodninger, and its definite singular form is anmodningen. The first clause therefore describes the request as fair or reasonable. The second det means “it” in the fixed translation and refers back to the request or its content in this utterance. Det is the Danish third-person singular neuter pronoun. When a pronoun directly agrees with a noun, Danish distinguishes den for common gender and det for neuter; here, the observed det presents the thing being respected as “it/that” in the intended meaning. kan jeg combines the present modal form kan of kunne (“can/be able to”) with jeg (“I”). In the full clause, this is not a question. The clause begins with the object-like topic det, then has the finite verb kan, followed by the subject jeg: det kan jeg .... This verb-second order produces the meaning “I can ...” while placing det first. respektere means “respect.” It is the infinitive form of the verb and follows the modal kan directly, without at: kan respektere = “can respect.” Putting the parts together, Det er en rimelig anmodning means “That’s a fair request,” and og det kan jeg respektere means “and I can respect it.” The complete utterance is: “That’s a fair request, and I can respect it.”

7. Jeg vil også sige det tydeligt til dig, når jeg faktisk gerne vil have råd.

   I'll also tell you clearly when I actually want advice.

   Jeg vil

   I will / I want to

   også

   also

   sige

   say / tell

   det

   it / that

   tydeligt

   clearly

   til dig

   to you

   når

   when

   faktisk

   actually

   gerne

   gladly; willingly

   have

   have

   råd

   advice

   More detail

   Jeg vil: jeg is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” vil is the present form of ville. With an infinitive, ville commonly expresses a future intention or a wish; here Jeg vil sige means “I will tell/say.” In another context, vil can also mean “want to.” også: This adverb means “also” and adds this action to something already relevant. Its position after vil gives the main-clause pattern Jeg vil også + infinitive (“I will also …”). sige: sige is the infinitive of “say” or “tell.” After the modal vil, the infinitive is used without an infinitive marker: Jeg vil sige (“I will say/tell”). With an object and a recipient, sige noget til nogen can mean “tell something to someone.” det: This is the object pronoun “it” in the meaning fixed by the translation. It is the thing being said; the sentence does not need to name that content again. Det is also used in other grammatical roles, so its exact function here comes from its position after sige and from the translation. tydeligt: This means “clearly” here. It is the adverbial form related to tydelig (“clear”) and describes how the saying is done. Compare en tydelig besked (“a clear message”) with at sige noget tydeligt (“to say something clearly”): the adjective describes a noun, while the adverb describes the action. til dig: til means “to,” and dig is the object form of the second-person singular pronoun: du is used as a subject, while dig is used after a preposition or as an object. Thus sige det til dig means “tell it to you.” når: This conjunction introduces a time clause, “when.” The pattern når + clause identifies the time or condition at which the main action applies. Here når jeg ... introduces the point at which the speaker wants advice. faktisk: This adverb means “actually” or “in fact.” Here it emphasizes that the speaker genuinely wants advice at the specified time, rather than merely mentioning advice in general. gerne: This adverb expresses willingness or desire. In the pattern gerne vil + infinitive, it often contributes the natural meaning “would like to” or “want to,” rather than requiring the literal translation “gladly.” Thus gerne vil have means “would like to have/want.” have: have is the infinitive meaning “have.” It follows the modal expression vil in vil have; the form does not change for this subject in the infinitive. A reusable pattern is vil have + noun, meaning “want/would like to have + noun.” råd: råd means “advice” in this sentence. It is the thing the speaker wants to have. The same Danish form can have other meanings in other contexts, but the fixed translation selects “advice” here. Together, Jeg vil også sige det tydeligt til dig means “I will also tell you clearly,” with vil marking the speaker’s intention, det as what is said, and til dig as the recipient. The time clause når jeg faktisk gerne vil have råd means “when I actually want advice”: når introduces the clause, faktisk emphasizes the desire, and gerne vil have råd expresses wanting advice. The complete utterance is therefore: “I’ll also tell you clearly when I actually want advice.”

8. Det vil hjælpe mig med at svare på den måde, du har brug for.

   That will help me respond in the way you need.

   Det vil

   That will

   hjælpe

   help

   mig

   me

   svare

   respond; answer

   den

   the

   måde

   way; manner

   du har brug for

   you need

   More detail

   Det vil begins the sentence with det as the subject, meaning “that” in the supplied translation. Its exact referent is not specified in this sentence. vil is the present form of ville; with the infinitive hjælpe, it expresses a future or expected result here: “will help.” In other contexts, ville can also express wanting, so the surrounding construction matters. hjælpe is the infinitive “to help.” After the modal vil, Danish uses the infinitive without an infinitive marker. Example: Det vil hjælpe meget. — “That will help a lot.” mig means “me.” It is the object form of the first-person pronoun. Danish uses mig for both direct and indirect object roles. Compare Jeg hjælper dig. — “I help you,” where jeg is the subject and dig is the object. svare means “to respond” or “to answer.” In this sentence it appears in the frame med at svare, meaning “with responding.” The at marks this infinitive; svare is not directly paired with vil, because vil directly governs hjælpe. Danish commonly uses svare på for responding to or answering something. Example: Jeg vil svare på spørgsmålet. — “I will answer the question.” den is a determiner used with the singular common-gender noun måde; in this sentence the combination is understood as “the way” in the supplied translation. Its form matches the noun's common-gender classification. måde means “way” or “manner.” Together, den måde forms the noun phrase “the way.” Example: på den måde — “in that way” or “that way,” depending on the surrounding sentence. du har brug for is the Danish construction meaning “you need.” du is the second-person singular subject, and har is the present form of have (“to have”). Literally, the construction contains “have use for,” but it is normally translated as “need.” Example: Du har brug for hjælp. — “You need help.” The chunks combine as Det vil hjælpe mig (“That will help me”) + med at svare (“with responding”) + på den måde (“in the way”) + du har brug for (“you need”). Thus the whole utterance means: “That will help me respond in the way you need.”