Breakdown of Bestillingsdatoen var for to dage siden.
være
to be
to
two
dagen
the day
for
for (preposition)
siden
ago
bestillingsdatoen
the order date
Questions & Answers about Bestillingsdatoen var for to dage siden.
How is the compound word bestillingsdatoen put together?
It combines bestilling (order) and dato (date), with the definite article -en at the end. Because the first word needs to connect to the second, a linking s is added in the middle, creating bestilling + s + dato + en.
Why is it specifically an s linking the two words in bestillingsdatoen?
There is a very reliable rule here: when the first noun in a compound ends in certain suffixes like -ing, -else, or -tion (as bestilling does), you almost always add a linking s (called a fuge-s) to glue it to the next word.
Why isn't the first part of the compound definite, like bestillingensdato?
In Danish, compound nouns act as a single unit, and only the final noun takes the definite ending. The first noun is always in its basic form (plus any linking letters). The gender of the whole word is also decided by the last noun, so because dato is an en-word, the whole compound gets the -en ending.
How does the "ago" construction work in for to dage siden?
To say "ago" in Danish, you frame the time phrase with for at the beginning and siden at the end. So "two days ago" becomes for to dage siden (literally: before two days since). English speakers often forget to put siden at the end, so remember that both parts are required!
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