Breakdown of Han er sur fordi han ikke har shampooen.
være
to be
han
he
have
to have
ikke
not
sur
mad
fordi
because
shampooen
the shampoo
Questions & Answers about Han er sur fordi han ikke har shampooen.
Why does ikke come before the verb in han ikke har?
This is a very important rule in Danish! The word fordi (because) starts a subordinate clause (a dependent part of the sentence). In these clauses, adverbs like ikke must go before the verb. If it were a standalone main sentence, it would be han har ikke (he does not have).
I thought sur meant 'sour'. Why is it translated as 'angry'?
You are right that sur literally means 'sour', like a lemon. However, in everyday Danish, it is the most common word used to mean 'angry', 'mad', or 'grumpy' when talking about a person's mood.
How do we know shampooen means 'the shampoo' and not just 'shampoo'?
In Danish, the word for 'the' is attached to the end of the noun rather than being a separate word in front. The word shampoo is a common-gender word (an en-word), so you add -en to the end to get shampooen (the shampoo).
Is shampoo treated like a normal Danish word?
Yes! Even though it is a loanword from English and keeps its English spelling, it follows normal Danish grammar rules. That is why it can take the standard -en ending to become shampooen.
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