Conditionals Without Hvis
In Danish, you can form a conditional sentence ("if" clause) without actually using the word hvis (if). To do this, you simply drop hvis and move the verb to the beginning of the clause, creating a V1 (verb-first) word order.
Because this entire conditional clause acts as the first element of the overall sentence, the main clause that follows it must also start with a verb to satisfy the standard V2 (verb-second) rule. This creates a distinct pattern: [Verb] [Subject] ... , [Verb] [Subject] ...
| If you sign the contract today, it is valid. | Underskriver du kontrakten i dag, er den gyldig. |
| If she cancels the subscription, she loses the money. | Opsiger hun abonnementet, mister hun pengene. |
Subscriptions and Agreements
This compact V1 structure is incredibly common in Danish, especially when discussing practical arrangements like contracts (kontrakter) and subscriptions (abonnementer).
| If he buys the subscription now, he gets the discount. | Køber han abonnementet nu, får han rabatten. |
| If we extend the agreement, we keep the discount. | Forlænger vi aftalen, beholder vi rabatten. |
| If the customer forgets the deadline, the contract expires automatically. | Glemmer kunden fristen, udløber kontrakten automatisk. |
Conditions and Notices
When dealing with agreements, you will often need to talk about terms or conditions (vilkår) and advance notices (varsel). The grammar works exactly the same way: start the condition with the verb, and follow up with the consequence, also starting with the verb.
| If the member accepts the condition, we start tomorrow. | Accepterer medlemmet vilkåret, begynder vi i morgen. |
| If the notice is short, you cannot cancel the contract. | Er varslet kort, kan du ikke opsige kontrakten. |
| If you forget the notice, we extend the subscription. | Glemmer du varslet, forlænger vi abonnementet. |
