Breakdown of Her er nøglen. — Tak skal du have.
være
to be
her
here
nøglen
the key
tak skal du have
thank you (when handed something)
Questions & Answers about Her er nøglen. — Tak skal du have.
Why is the word for "the key" written as nøglen?
In Danish, "the" isn't a separate word that goes in front of the noun. Instead, it is added to the end of the word as a suffix. The word for "a key" is en nøgle. Because it is an en-word that already ends in an "e", we just add an -n to make it nøglen (the key).
What does Tak skal du have literally mean?
It literally translates to "Thanks shall you have." While it sounds very formal or old-fashioned in English, it is actually an incredibly common, everyday way to say "Thank you" in Danish.
Why is the word order skal du instead of du skal in the second sentence?
This happens because of the Danish "V2 rule", which dictates that the main verb must be the second piece of information in a sentence. Since the sentence starts with the word Tak (Thanks), the verb skal has to come exactly second. This pushes the subject du (you) into the third position.
Why is the verb have used here instead of the present tense har?
have is the infinitive (dictionary) form of the verb, meaning "to have". It is used here because it is paired with the helper verb skal (shall/must). Just like in English, helper verbs are followed by the infinitive form of the main verb.
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