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Danish

### The SWAP Rule

In Danish, a noun usually gets its "the" from a suffix attached to the end of the word, like *sofaen* (the sofa). But when you add an adjective to describe it, you cannot simply put the adjective in front of the word.

Instead, you must use the **SWAP rule**:
1. Drop the noun's definite suffix (return it to its base form, like *sofa*).
2. Swap the suffix for a free-standing article placed in front of the adjective.
3. Add an **-e** to the end of the adjective.

For common gender nouns (words that use *en*), use the free-standing article **den**.

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### Neuter Nouns

For neuter nouns (words that use *et*), the rule is exactly the same, but you use the free-standing article **det**. The adjective still gets the **-e** ending.

*(Note: When adding an ending to words like gammel, it drops a letter to become gamle.)*

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### Plural Nouns

When describing plural definite nouns, use the free-standing plural article **de**. Just like with singular nouns, the adjective takes an **-e** ending.

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### Putting It All Together

Always remember the formula for definite attributive adjectives: **den / det / de** + **adjective with -e** + **noun without definite suffix**. Make sure you don't accidentally leave the definite suffix attached to the noun!

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Adjectives with definite nouns (den / det / de ... -e)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Definite nouns and the copula (-en, -et, er)

Indefinite articles (en, et)

Present tense verbs and word order (-r)

Plural subject pronouns (vi, I, de)

The verb to have (har)

Yes/No questions

Wh-questions (hvad, hvem, hvor)

Main clause negation (ikke)

Regular noun plurals (-er, -r)

Short noun plurals (-e)

Definite plurals (-ne)

Neuter adjective agreement (-t)

Plural adjective agreement (-e)

Adjectives with indefinite nouns

Numbers 1 to 10

Numbers 11 to 20

Counting by tens to 100

Expressing age (er ... år)

Genitive possession (-s)

Singular possessives (min, din)

Third-person possessives (hans, hendes)

Plural possessives (vores, jeres, deres)

Reflexive possessives (sin, sit, sine)

Singular object pronouns (mig, dig)

Plural object pronouns (os, jer, dem)

The infinitive marker (at)

The modal verb can (kan)

The modal verb want to (vil)

The modal verb must (skal)

Negating modal verbs

Inversion after adverbs

Prepositions of position (i, på)

Prepositions of direction (til, fra)

Days of the week (mandag, tirsdag...)

Months of the year (januar, februar...)

Telling time (hel, halv, kvart)

Coordinating conjunctions (og, men, eller)

Subordinating conjunctions (at, fordi)

Subordinate clause negation

Commands (køb, vent, spis)

Zero-ending neuter plurals

The Human Body: Head and Face

The Human Body: Limbs and Torso

Personal Hygiene

Digital Life

Tools and Hardware

Emergency and Safety

Common Materials

Money and Payments

Short answers (Ja, det gør jeg)

Greetings (hej, godmorgen, farvel)

Thanks and apologies (tak, undskyld)

Jobs and nationalities (Hun er lærer)

Likes and dislikes (kan godt lide)

Somebody and something (nogen, noget, ingen)

How much? (meget, lidt, mere, nok)

With, by, over and under (med, ved, over, under)

Ordinals and dates (den første april)

Wishes for every occasion (tillykke, god bedring)

Times of day (om morgenen, om aftenen)

My day (stå op, gå i seng)

Past tense I: -ede and -te (i går)

My new hat (min nye hat, små, gamle)

Past tense II: irregular verbs (var, havde, gik)

Reacting in a conversation (nå, det lyder godt)

The family and irregular plurals (mænd, børn, fødder)

In the shop (Hvad koster det?)

Demonstratives: that and those (den, det, de)

Demonstratives: this and these (denne, dette, disse)

Adverbs of manner (-t)

Comparing things (-ere, end)

Superlative adjectives (-est)

Definite superlative adjectives (-este)

Irregular adjective comparison

Comparing long adjectives (mere, mest)

The reflexive pronoun (sig)

Reflexive verbs

Reciprocal verbs (-s)

Deponent verbs (-s)

Past opinions (syntes)

Present perfect tense with regular verbs (har... -et/-t)

Present perfect tense with irregular verbs (har...)

Present perfect tense with movement (er...)

Past perfect tense (havde / var...)

Future with present tense

Question	Answer
the (common, before adjective)	den
new	ny
the sofa	sofaen
I am buying the new sofa.	Jeg køber den nye sofa.
the (neuter, before adjective)	det
old	gammel
the rug	tæppet
The man has the old rug.	Manden har det gamle tæppe.
the (plural, before adjective)	de
soft	blød
the cushion	puden
We see the soft cushions.	Vi ser de bløde puder.
the mirror	spejlet
The woman is not buying the old mirror.	Kvinden køber ikke det gamle spejl.
the bookcase	reolen
Where is the old bookcase?	Hvor er den gamle reol?
the vase	vasen
nice	flot
The red vase is nice.	Den røde vase er flot.
The new rugs are here.	De nye tæpper er her.
The soft sofa is red.	Den bløde sofa er rød.
We are buying the nice vase in the store.	Vi køber den flotte vase i butikken.
The new mirror is large.	Det nye spejl er stort.
The book is in the old bookcase.	Bogen er i den gamle reol.
The girl is reading in the soft bed.	Pigen læser i den bløde seng.
Where is the white cushion?	Hvor er den hvide pude?
The nice picture is old.	Det flotte billede er gammelt.