Breakdown of Er du i stand til at læse uden briller?
være
to be
du
you
læse
to read
at
to
brillerne
the glasses (spectacles)
uden
without
i stand til
able to, capable of
Questions & Answers about Er du i stand til at læse uden briller?
What does i stand til mean, and how does it differ from just using kan?
The phrase i stand til means able to or capable of. While you could simply say Kan du læse uden briller? (Can you read without glasses?), using i stand til emphasizes the physical ability or capacity to do something.
Why do we use at before læse right after the preposition til?
In Danish, when a preposition like til is followed by a verb, that verb takes the infinitive form and is usually preceded by at (to). This differs from English, which often uses an -ing verb after a preposition (like in the phrase capable of reading).
Does the word stand have a meaning outside of this expression?
Yes. On its own, the noun stand usually means condition or state. For example, a used bicycle might be in god stand (good condition). This makes the logic of the phrase easier to remember, as i stand til literally means in a condition to.
Why is briller used here without any article?
When talking about things generally after a preposition like uden (without), Danish often drops the article, just like English. Uden briller translates directly to without glasses. If you said uden brillerne, you would specifically be saying without the glasses.
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