English scatters its question words across the alphabet: where, when, why, how, how old, how many, how long. Danish builds almost all of them from one root — hvor — plus a second element. Once you see that hvor is the engine, the whole family becomes one systematic pattern instead of a list to memorise. This page maps the hvor-paradigm, and — most usefully for English speakers — shows how hvor + an adjective replaces every English "how X" question in a single, predictable construction.
Hvor on its own — where
Bare hvor means "where". It asks about location (not direction — that comes next).
Hvor bor du henne for tiden?
Where do you live these days?
Undskyld, hvor er toilettet?
Excuse me, where's the toilet?
Hvor + adjective/adverb = "how X" — the big pattern
This is the heart of the page. To ask "how old / how big / how long / how many", Danish does not use a single word for "how" the way English does. Instead it takes hvor and places an adjective or adverb right after it. Hvor contributes the "to what degree" meaning; the adjective specifies the dimension. Literally it's "where-old", "where-big", "where-many" — but it simply means "how old", "how big", "how many".
| Danish | Literally | English |
|---|---|---|
| hvor gammel | where-old | how old |
| hvor stor | where-big | how big |
| hvor mange | where-many | how many |
| hvor meget | where-much | how much |
| hvor længe | where-long(time) | how long (duration) |
| hvor langt | where-far | how far |
| hvor tit / hvor ofte | where-often | how often |
| hvor dyr | where-expensive | how expensive |
Hvor gammel er din lillebror nu?
How old is your little brother now?
Hvor mange søskende har du?
How many siblings do you have?
Hvor længe har I boet i København?
How long have you lived in Copenhagen?
Hvor dyrt var hotellet i sidste ende?
How expensive was the hotel in the end?
Notice hvor dyrt in the last example: the adjective takes its neuter -t ending because it agrees with the neuter noun hotel. The "how" construction does not freeze the adjective — it inflects normally.
Hvorhen and hvorfra — where to, where from
Bare hvor is purely locational. To ask about direction — motion toward or away — Danish adds a directional particle. "Where to" is hvorhen (or, more commonly in speech, hvor … hen split around the verb). "Where from" is hvorfra (or split as hvor … fra).
Hvor skal du hen i sommerferien?
Where are you going (to) for the summer holidays?
Hvorhen rejser de næste år?
Where are they travelling (to) next year?
Hvor kommer du fra?
Where are you from? (lit. Where come you from?)
Hvorfra fik du den idé?
Where did you get that idea from?
The split forms (hvor … hen, hvor … fra) are the everyday spoken norm; the joined forms (hvorhen, hvorfra) sound a touch more formal or emphatic. Both are correct. The directional logic behind hen and other motion particles is covered on the place and direction adverbs page.
Hvornår, hvorfor, hvordan — when, why, how(-manner)
Three more hvor-built words round out the family. Note that hvordan is "how" in the sense of manner ("in what way") — it is not used for the "how + adjective" measurements above.
| Word | Element | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| hvornår | hvor + når (when) | when |
| hvorfor | hvor + for (for) | why |
| hvordan | hvor + dan (manner) | how (in what manner) |
Hvornår begynder filmen i aften?
When does the film start tonight?
Hvorfor sagde du ikke noget tidligere?
Why didn't you say anything earlier?
Hvordan kom du hjem fra festen?
How did you get home from the party?
The contrast between hvordan (manner) and hvor + adjective (measurement) is the single most useful thing on this page, so let's make it explicit. "How are you?" — manner — is Hvordan har du det?. "How old are you?" — measurement — is Hvor gammel er du?. English uses "how" for both; Danish splits them.
The complete hvor-paradigm
| Danish | English | Asks about |
|---|---|---|
| hvor | where | location |
| hvor … hen / hvorhen | where to | direction toward |
| hvor … fra / hvorfra | where from | direction away / origin |
| hvornår | when | time |
| hvorfor | why | reason |
| hvordan | how | manner |
| hvor + adj/adv | how + adj | degree / measurement |
Like all Danish question words, every member of this family sits first in the clause and triggers V2 inversion: question phrase first, finite verb second, subject third.
Common Mistakes
1. Inventing a separate "how" word for measurements (using hvordan).
❌ Hvordan gammel er du?
Incorrect — measurements use hvor, not hvordan
✅ Hvor gammel er du?
How old are you?
2. Using hvor for "how many" without the adjective.
❌ Hvor børn har du?
Incorrect — needs mange after hvor
✅ Hvor mange børn har du?
How many children do you have?
3. Using bare hvor for direction instead of hvor … hen.
❌ Hvor skal du i aften?
Marginal — sounds incomplete for a destination question
✅ Hvor skal du hen i aften?
Where are you going tonight?
4. Forgetting agreement on the adjective after hvor.
❌ Hvor stor er husene?
Incorrect — husene is plural, so the adjective needs -e
✅ Hvor store er husene?
How big are the houses?
5. Using hvordan to greet ("how are you") with hvor.
❌ Hvor har du det?
Incorrect — 'how are you' is a manner question
✅ Hvordan har du det?
How are you?
Key Takeaways
- Hvor is the engine of the question system: where, where-to, where-from, when, why, how all build on it.
- Hvor + adjective/adverb is the systematic replacement for every English "how X" measurement — and the adjective still agrees.
- Hvordan is "how" only in the sense of manner, never for measurements.
- Direction questions add a particle: hvor … hen (to) and hvor … fra (from), usually split in speech.
Now practice Danish
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Start learning Danish→Related Topics
- Wh-Questions (Hv-spørgsmål)A1 — Danish question words all start with hv- (silent h): hvem, hvad, hvor, hvornår, hvorfor, hvordan, hvilken, hvis — and how hvor + adjective means 'how big/old/many'.
- Asking Questions: An OverviewA1 — How Danish builds yes/no and wh-questions by inverting the verb — and why there is no 'do' like in English.
- Interrogative Pronouns: Hvem, Hvad, HvilkenA2 — Danish question pronouns — hvem (who/whom, no case change), hvad (what), the agreeing hvilken/hvilket/hvilke (which), hvis (whose), and the spoken hvad for en/et/nogle — plus the V2 inversion they trigger.
- Adverbs of Place and DirectionA2 — The Danish motion/location doublet system — short forms for going somewhere, long forms for being somewhere — plus her, der, hvor.
- The V2 Rule: Verb SecondA1 — The core rule of Danish main clauses: the finite verb stands in second position, with exactly one constituent before it — and the subject inverts when anything else is fronted.