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Danish

To weigh pros and cons, Danish uses the paired phrase **på den ene side ... på den anden side** (on the one hand ... on the other hand).

Because these phrases take up the entire first position in their respective clauses, they trigger the V2 (verb-second) rule. The verb must immediately follow the phrase, coming *before* the subject in both halves of the sentence.

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Notice how the verb *er* (is) directly follows the introductory phrases, pushing the subjects (*udstationeringen* and *kulturstødet*) into the third position.

This inversion applies regardless of the verbs you use:

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This balanced structure is perfect for discussing complex experiences, like the ups and downs of living abroad:

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Contrasting phrases (på den ene side ... på den anden side)

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

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

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...)

Question	Answer
on the one hand	på den ene side
the posting	udstationeringen
the adventure	eventyret
on the other hand (balancing arguments)	på den anden side
the culture shock	kulturstødet
On the one hand the posting is an adventure, on the other hand the culture shock is hard.	På den ene side er udstationeringen et eventyr, på den anden side er kulturstødet hårdt.
the home country	hjemlandet
On the one hand the foreign country is exciting, on the other hand I always miss the home country.	På den ene side er udlandet spændende, på den anden side savner jeg altid hjemlandet.
enriching	berigende
the mentality	mentaliteten
On the one hand the work is enriching, on the other hand the local mentality is difficult.	På den ene side er arbejdet berigende, på den anden side er den lokale mentalitet svær.
the quality of life	livskvaliteten
On the one hand the quality of life is high, on the other hand it is just difficult.	På den ene side er livskvaliteten høj, på den anden side er det bare svært.
Remember it: on the one hand the adventure is fantastic, on the other hand the language barrier is enormous.	Husk det: på den ene side er eventyret fantastisk, på den anden side er sprogbarrieren enorm.
On the one hand she loves the adventure, on the other hand the foreign country is strange.	På den ene side elsker hun eventyret, på den anden side er udlandet fremmed.
On the one hand your posting is enormously enriching, on the other hand the home country is safe.	På den ene side er din udstationering enormt berigende, på den anden side er hjemlandet trygt.
On the one hand the posting is a good experience, on the other hand the quality of life is sometimes low.	På den ene side er udstationeringen en god oplevelse, på den anden side er livskvaliteten sommetider lav.
On the one hand the posting is a big step, on the other hand it is an enriching adventure.	På den ene side er udstationeringen et stort skridt, på den anden side er det et berigende eventyr.
On the one hand the culture is enormously exciting, on the other hand he misses the Danish mentality.	På den ene side er kulturen enormt spændende, på den anden side savner han den danske mentalitet.
On the one hand everyday life is enriching, on the other hand the culture shock is enormous.	På den ene side er hverdagen berigende, på den anden side er kulturstødet enormt.