When someone asks hvordan har du det? ("how are you?"), the way you answer reveals a split that English doesn't have. Danish reports feelings through two different frames: have det + adverb ("to be doing / faring") for your overall state, and være + adjective ("to be") for a specific emotion or sensation. On top of that, a handful of feelings are reflexive verbs (jeg keder mig, "I'm bored"), and a few sensations — most importantly being cold or hot — use their own dedicated verbs. Get these frames right and you sound natural; mix them up and you can accidentally say that your body is cold to the touch. This page lays out all the high-frequency feeling expressions, grouped by frame.
The two frames: have det vs være
The core distinction is this: have det answers how are you doing, overall?, while være + adjective names one specific state right now. English collapses both into "I am", which is exactly why learners reach for være everywhere.
| Frame | Danish | Literal | Idiomatic |
|---|---|---|---|
| have det | jeg har det godt | I have it good | I'm doing well |
| have det | jeg har det skidt | I have it badly | I'm doing badly / feeling rough |
| have det | jeg har det fint | I have it fine | I'm fine |
| have det | jeg har det dårligt | I have it poorly | I feel unwell / off |
| være | jeg er glad | I am glad | I'm happy |
| være | jeg er træt | I am tired | I'm tired |
| være | jeg er sulten | I am hungry | I'm hungry |
Notice that have det takes an adverb (godt, skidt, fint — the -t form), because it is describing how you are faring. Være takes an adjective that agrees with you (glad, træt, sulten). The verb have here is the same everyday verb covered in the reference for have; være is in the reference for være.
Hvordan har du det? — Jeg har det godt, tak.
How are you? — I'm doing well, thanks.
Hun har det skidt efter rejsen.
She's feeling rough after the trip.
Jeg er så glad for, at du kom.
I'm so happy that you came.
Specific emotions with være
The være frame covers most named emotions. The one to watch is sad: Danish doesn't have a single common adjective for it. The everyday expression is ked af det — literally "tired of it", but idiomatically "sad / upset". It almost always appears with that little af det attached.
| Danish | Literal | Idiomatic |
|---|---|---|
| jeg er glad | I am glad | I'm happy |
| jeg er ked af det | I am tired of it | I'm sad / upset |
| jeg er vred | I am angry | I'm angry |
| jeg er træt | I am tired | I'm tired |
| jeg er nervøs | I am nervous | I'm nervous |
| jeg er sulten | I am hungry | I'm hungry |
| jeg er tørstig | I am thirsty | I'm thirsty |
Han blev vred, da bussen kørte uden ham.
He got angry when the bus left without him.
Jeg er ked af det, fordi min ferie blev aflyst.
I'm sad because my holiday got cancelled.
Being bored: the reflexive jeg keder mig
"To be bored" is not an adjective in Danish — it's the reflexive verb at kede sig ("to bore oneself"). The pronoun changes with the person, exactly like other reflexive verbs.
| Person | Danish | English |
|---|---|---|
| jeg | jeg keder mig | I'm bored |
| du | du keder dig | you're bored |
| han / hun | han keder sig | he's bored |
| vi | vi keder os | we're bored |
Børnene keder sig, når det regner hele dagen.
The kids get bored when it rains all day.
Jeg kedede mig til mødet i går.
I was bored at the meeting yesterday.
Cold and hot: the big trap
Here is the error English speakers make most. To say you feel cold or hot, Danish does not use jeg er kold / jeg er varm. Those mean your body is cold or hot to the touch — describing the temperature of you as an object, which can sound alarming or comical. To report the sensation, Danish uses dedicated verbs or the have det frame.
| Meaning | Danish | Literal |
|---|---|---|
| I feel cold | jeg fryser | I freeze |
| I feel hot / too warm | jeg har det for varmt / jeg sveder | I have it too warm / I sweat |
| I'm comfortable, feeling good | jeg har det godt | I have it good |
| The coffee is cold (object) | kaffen er kold | the coffee is cold |
Jeg fryser — kan vi gå indenfor?
I'm cold — can we go inside?
Der er 30 grader; jeg sveder helt vildt.
It's 30 degrees; I'm sweating like crazy.
Tag en trøje på, hvis du fryser.
Put on a jumper if you're cold.
A short dialogue putting it together
A check-in between two friends, running through several frames.
— Hej, hvordan har du det? — Lidt træt, men jeg har det fint. Og dig?
— Hi, how are you? — A bit tired, but I'm fine. And you?
— Jeg fryser sådan i dag, og jeg er ret sulten. — Skal vi finde et varmt sted?
— I'm so cold today, and I'm pretty hungry. — Shall we find somewhere warm?
— Ja tak! Jeg kedede mig helt vildt derhjemme. — Så kommer du med — det bliver hyggeligt.
— Yes please! I was so bored at home. — Then you'll come along — it'll be nice.
Look at how the frames divide the work: hvordan har du det and jeg har det fint report overall wellbeing; jeg er træt / sulten names specific states; jeg fryser handles the cold sensation; and jeg kedede mig uses the reflexive for boredom.
Common Mistakes
1. Jeg er kold / varm for feeling cold or hot. This describes your body's surface temperature, not your sensation.
❌ Jeg er kold, kan vi gå ind?
Incorrect for the sensation — this says your body is cold to the touch.
✅ Jeg fryser, kan vi gå ind?
I'm cold, can we go inside?
2. Using være for overall wellbeing instead of have det. "How are you" is answered with the have det frame.
❌ Hvordan er du? — Jeg er godt.
Incorrect — wrong frame and ungrammatical (godt is an adverb).
✅ Hvordan har du det? — Jeg har det godt.
How are you? — I'm doing well.
3. Dropping af det from ked af det. Bare ked doesn't carry the "sad" meaning on its own.
❌ Jeg er ked.
Incomplete — sounds unfinished; ked needs af det.
✅ Jeg er ked af det.
I'm sad / upset.
4. Treating "bored" as an adjective. Boredom is the reflexive verb kede sig, not jeg er kedelig — which means "I am boring"!
❌ Jeg er kedelig til festen.
Incorrect — this says 'I am boring (a dull person) at the party'.
✅ Jeg keder mig til festen.
I'm bored at the party.
5. Forgetting the adverb form after have det. Have det takes the -t adverb (godt, skidt, dårligt), not the bare adjective.
❌ Jeg har det god.
Incorrect — needs the adverb godt, not the adjective god.
✅ Jeg har det godt.
I'm doing well.
Key Takeaways
Now practice Danish
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Danish→Related Topics
- HaveA1 — Full reference for have ('to have') — principal parts, all core tenses in natural sentences, its role as the default perfect auxiliary, and the har du...? question opener.
- Reflexive VerbsA2 — Inherently reflexive Danish verbs that always need sig/mig/dig — glæde sig, skynde sig, sætte sig, føle sig, gifte sig, more sig, lægge sig — and how they differ from reciprocals.
- VæreA1 — Full reference for være ('to be') — principal parts, all core tenses in natural sentences, der er existentials, and the single non-agreeing form er.
- Reactions and InterjectionsB1 — The little Danish words — nå, pyt, av, øv, hold da op — that carry emotion, and why mastering them signals real fluency.
- Greetings and FarewellsA1 — How Danes say hello and goodbye — hej, goddag, farvel, vi ses — with register notes and the quirk that 'hej' works both ways.