The Circumposition "for ... siden"
To say how long ago an event happened, Danish uses a circumposition—a phrase that wraps around both sides of the time expression. The structure is for + [time period] + siden.
| He invented the telephone a hundred years ago. | Han opfandt telefonen for hundrede år siden. |
| The research began many years ago. | Forskningen begyndte for mange år siden. |
Discussing History and Discoveries
When talking about historical milestones, you will frequently use this structure alongside past tense verbs like opdagede (discovered), opfandt (invented), or gjorde (made).
| She discovered the planet forty years ago. | Hun opdagede planeten for fyrre år siden. |
| The researcher made the discovery a century ago. | Forskeren gjorde opdagelsen for et århundrede siden. |
Questions and Negations
When asking a question, use standard inverted word order (verb-subject) and keep the for ... siden expression at the end of the sentence.
| Did she build the machine twenty years ago? | Byggede hun maskinen for tyve år siden? |
To make a negative statement, place ikke after the verb (and subject, if inverted), keeping the time expression at the end.
| They did not discover the planet five years ago. | De opdagede ikke planeten for fem år siden. |
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