Breakdown of Vil du have en bredde på tyve centimeter, ændrer vi designet.
du
you
en
a / an (common)
vi
we
have
to have
Questions & Answers about Vil du have en bredde på tyve centimeter, ændrer vi designet.
Why do we use på in en bredde på tyve centimeter instead of translating 'of' as af?
In Danish, when specifying an exact measurement, age, or quantity attached to a noun, you must use på. English uses 'of' ('a width of...'), but Danish treats the quantity as a specific attribute mapped onto the noun, which requires på.
There is no word for 'if' (hvis) in the Danish sentence. How do we know it's a condition?
By starting the clause with the verb (Vil) instead of the subject (du), the sentence creates a conditional clause. This 'verb-first' structure means exactly the same thing as starting with Hvis du vil have... but is extremely common and sounds very natural in Danish.
Why does the second part say ændrer vi instead of vi ændrer?
This happens because of the V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire first conditional clause (Vil du have...) takes up position one in the overall sentence. To keep the main verb in the second position, ændrer must come immediately next, pushing the subject (vi) after the verb.
Why use Vil du have for 'If you want' instead of just Vil du?
In Danish, vil acts primarily as a modal verb ('will' or 'want to'). If you just said Vil du en bredde, it would feel like the main verb is missing. Adding have (to have) creates the standard, everyday phrase for wanting a noun or a physical thing: vil have means 'want'.