Breakdown of Han vil gerne se gyserfilmen, men jeg vil hellere se komedien.
jeg
I
han
he
se
to see / to look at
ville
want to / will
gerne
gladly / would like to
men
but
hellere
rather
gyserfilmen
the horror movie
komedien
the comedy
Questions & Answers about Han vil gerne se gyserfilmen, men jeg vil hellere se komedien.
Why do we use gerne in the first half but hellere in the second half?
The word gerne shows that you like or want to do something, so vil gerne se means would like to watch. hellere is the comparative form of gerne. It means rather or prefer to. So, replacing it makes vil hellere se, meaning would rather watch.
Why do gerne and hellere go between the two verbs (vil and se)?
In a standard Danish main clause, central adverbs like gerne and hellere are placed right after the first verb (the conjugated verb, vil) and before the second verb (the infinitive, se).
How is the word gyserfilmen built?
It is a compound noun made of gyser (a thriller or horror story, coming from the verb at gyse, meaning to shudder) and film. The -en at the end is the definite article suffix, which makes it the horror movie.
Does vil in this sentence mean the same as the English future tense will?
No, the Danish verb vil comes from at ville, which means to want to. When combined with adverbs like gerne and hellere, it expresses a present desire or preference, translating nicely to would like or would rather, rather than expressing a future action.
Learn Han vil gerne se gyserfilmen, men jeg vil hellere se komedien and more in Danish
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free