Expressing purpose with a new subject
In Danish, you can use for at followed by a verb in the infinitive to express "in order to" when the person doing the action remains the same. But what happens if you do something so that someone else can act?
When the subject changes between the main action and the intended purpose, you use for at followed by a complete subordinate clause (subject + verb). In this context, it translates to "so that" or "in order that".
| The agent arrives at the base tonight so that we can plan the mission. | Agenten ankommer til basen i aften for at vi kan planlægge missionen. |
| I contact the spy so that he can infiltrate the building. | Jeg kontakter spionen for at han kan infiltrere bygningen. |
| The spy infiltrates the base so that the agent can contact her. | Spionen infiltrerer basen for at agenten kan kontakte hende. |
Negation in purpose clauses
Because the clause following for at is a subordinate clause, it must follow subordinate word order.
This is especially important when using a sentence adverb like ikke (not) to express that an action is taken so that the enemy cannot do something. Remember that in a subordinate clause, ikke must be placed before the verb.
| We change our identity so that the enemy cannot track us. | Vi ændrer vores identitet for at fjenden ikke kan spore os. |
| Does she hide her identity so that the police cannot find her? | Skjuler hun sin identitet for at politiet ikke kan finde hende? |
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