Breakdown of Printeren har selv brugt alt blækket!
have
to have
bruge
to use / to spend (money, time) / to need (together with the modal of obligation)
selv
oneself / myself / yourself / etc. (emphatic)
al
all, all of
printeren
the printer
blækket
the ink
Questions & Answers about Printeren har selv brugt alt blækket!
Why is it alt blækket with a definite ending on the noun instead of just alt blæk?
When you want to say all of a specific thing in Danish, you use al, alt, or alle followed directly by the definite form of the noun. So, all the ink becomes alt blækket. If you just said alt blæk, it would mean all ink in a general sense, not the specific ink inside this printer.
How do I know to use alt here instead of al or alle?
Blæk (ink) is a neuter word (et-word), which you can also see from the definite ending in blækket. Because it is neuter and singular, the word for all must match it, taking the neuter form alt. If it were a common gender noun (en-word) like mad (food), you would use al maden.
Why is selv placed between har and brugt?
In a Danish main clause, short adverbs like selv, ikke, or ofte are placed right after the first conjugated verb. Here, the first verb is the helper verb har, so selv steps in before the main action verb brugt.
Does selv just mean itself here?
Yes, in this context selv translates to itself or by itself. It personifies the printer a bit, adding a surprised or complaining tone to emphasize that the machine drained the ink on its own accord.
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