Breakdown of Hun trænede hårdere end atleten i går.
hun
she
i går
yesterday
hård
hard
end
than
træne
to work out; to practise (a sport); to train (a dog)
atleten
the athlete
Questions & Answers about Hun trænede hårdere end atleten i går.
Since hårdere describes how she trained, it acts as an adverb here. How is this comparative form made from the base adverb?
The base adverb is hårdt (hard), formed by adding a -t to the adjective hård. However, when forming the comparative ("harder"), adverbs usually drop that -t and just add -ere. Because of this rule, adjectives and adverbs often share the exact same comparative form: hårdere.
Could I use som instead of end to mean "than" in this sentence?
No, you must use end (than) because you are pointing out a difference using a comparative word (hårdere). You only use som (as) when comparing things that are on the same level, such as in the phrase lige så hårdt som (just as hard as).
Why is i går placed at the very end of the sentence?
In standard Danish sentence structure, adverbial phrases of time like i går (yesterday) normally go at the very end of the clause. You could also place it at the very beginning to emphasize when it happened (I går trænede hun hårdere...), but remember that doing so would force the verb to come before the subject.
What verb group does trænede belong to, and why is that ending used here?
It belongs to Group 1 of regular Danish verbs, which form their past tense by adding -ede to the verb stem (from the infinitive at træne). We use the past tense here because the action took place i går (yesterday).
Learn Hun trænede hårdere end atleten i går 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