Breakdown of Manden er i gang med at pakke udstyret, så teltet er klar.
være
to be
manden
the man
at
to
pakke
to pack
klar
ready
så
then, so
med
with; by (bus, train) / of, to (the meaning or point of something)
i gang
in progress, underway (busy with + doing)
udstyret
the equipment
teltet
the tent
Questions & Answers about Manden er i gang med at pakke udstyret, så teltet er klar.
Can I use så at instead of just så in this sentence?
Yes, you can. In Danish, så and så at can both be used to mean 'so that' to show the purpose or result of an action. Dropping the at and just using så is much more common in everyday speech, while så at sounds a bit more formal.
Does så introduce a main clause or a subordinate clause here?
When så means 'so that' (indicating purpose or result), it introduces a subordinate clause. This is important for word order if you add an adverb like ikke (not). In a subordinate clause, the adverb goes before the verb: ... så teltet ikke er klar.
Why use er i gang med at pakke instead of just translating 'is packing' as a single verb?
Danish does not have a direct equivalent to the English '-ing' tense (present continuous). To strongly emphasize that an action is happening right at this exact moment, you use phrases like er i gang med at (literally 'is in going with to'). You could simply say Manden pakker, but it loses that active, ongoing feeling.
teltet is a neuter noun (an et word). Why doesn't the adjective klar get a -t at the end?
klar is a slightly tricky adjective. When it means 'ready', it usually does not take the -t ending, even when describing neuter words. If you were to say teltet er klart, a Dane would likely understand it to mean the tent is 'clear' (as in transparent or obvious) rather than 'ready'.
Learn Manden er i gang med at pakke udstyret, så teltet er klar 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