When reading a recipe or manual, the focus is on what needs to be done rather than who is doing it. To express this, Danish uses the s-passive.
To form the present tense s-passive, simply add -s to the infinitive form of the verb. For example, hakke (to chop) becomes hakkes (is chopped).
| Every ingredient is chopped. | Hver ingrediens hakkes. |
| Both ingredients are mixed in the bowl. | Begge ingredienser blandes i skålen. |
Because recipes list a series of actions, you will often see multiple s-passive verbs connected together.
| The cream is whipped and added to the mixture. | Fløden piskes og tilsættes blandingen. |
| The chocolate is chopped, and the cake is baked. | Chokoladen hakkes, og kagen bages. |
When starting a sentence with a transition word like først (first), the V2 rule applies: the verb comes second, swapping places with the subject.
| First, the meat is fried in the pan. | Først steges kødet på panden. |
While common in recipes, the s-passive is used anytime a general process, rule, or service is described.
| I like the food that is served here. | Jeg kan lide maden der serveres her. |
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