Bulbs, trays and scales (pæren, bakken, vægten)

Same word, different thing

Three words you already know have a second, everyday meaning around the house:

wordthe meaning you knowthe new meaning
pærenthe pearthe light bulb
bakkenthe hillthe tray
vægtenthe weightthe scales
Can you change the bulb in the kitchen?
Kan du skifte pæren i køkkenet?

You spiser a pear but skifter a bulb: the verb usually tells you which one is meant.

Put the glasses on the tray.
Sæt glassene på bakken.

You walk op ad bakken, but glasses and cups go på bakken, the tray.

She weighs herself on the scales every morning.
Hun vejer sig på vægten hver morgen.

You can worry about din vægt, but you stand på vægten.

Rum or værelse?

rummet is a room seen as a space: dark, cold, big or small. Værelset is a room you live in, such as a bedroom or a hotel room.

The room was dark and cold.
Rummet var mørkt og koldt.

A description of the space itself.

There are no windows in the small room.
Der er ingen vinduer i det lille rum.

Et rum, det lille rum: it is a neuter noun.

Settings

indstillingen is a setting on a machine: a phone, an oven, a washing machine. On a phone, the menu is simply called Indstillinger.

The washing machine is on the hottest setting.
Vaskemaskinen står på den varmeste indstilling.

A machine står på a setting.

I have changed the settings on my phone.
Jeg har ændret indstillingerne på min mobil.

The same word can also mean a person's attitude; next to a machine it usually means the setting.

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