Adjectives with Bare Objects
In English, adjectives often require a preposition to connect to a noun object (for example, "rid of the debt" or "superior to us"). In Danish, a special group of adjectives can take a direct object straight away, without any prepositions.
More importantly, Danish usually flips the word order for these specific adjectives: the object comes before the adjective.
Structure: [Object] + [Adjective]
Worth and Rid Of (værd, kvit)
Two of the most common adjectives that follow this pattern are værd (worth) and kvit (rid of). Notice how the objects (umagen, pengene, and gælden) are placed directly before the adjective.
| The project requires a lot of work, but it is worth the trouble. | Projektet kræver meget arbejde, men det er umagen værd. |
| Because of inflation, the reasonable return is not worth the money. | På grund af inflationen er det rimelige afkast ikke pengene værd. |
| I will be grateful when I get rid of the debt. | Jeg vil være taknemmelig når jeg bliver gælden kvit. |
Mastery and Comparison (overlegen, mægtig, lig)
This object-first pattern also applies to adjectives describing capability or comparison. Common examples include:
- overlegen (superior to / in control of)
- mægtig (in command of / up to a task)
- lig (equal to)
| The enemy is superior to us, but we do not surrender. | Fjenden er os overlegen, men vi overgiver os ikke. |
| She is up to the task, but she is not equal to the opponent. | Hun er opgaven mægtig, men hun er ikke modstanderen lig. |
Note: While the object almost always comes first, you will occasionally see the adjective come first in fixed, math-like expressions, such as lig nul (equal to zero).
| Is it reasonable that her earnings are equal to zero? | Er det rimeligt at hendes indtjening er lig nul? |
Owing Favors (skyldig)
The adjective skyldig (owing / guilty) also takes a bare object. When you owe someone a favor, it can even take two objects: the indirect object (who you owe) and the direct object (what you owe). True to the rule, both objects are placed before the adjective!
| Thanks for the help, I owe you a big favor. | Tak for hjælpen, jeg er dig en stor tjeneste skyldig. |