Word
Dragen har et kæmpestort hoved og kulsorte øjne.
Meaning
The dragon has a giant head and coal black eyes.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Dragen har et kæmpestort hoved og kulsorte øjne.
og
and
et
a / an (neuter)
have
to have
hovedet
the head
Questions & Answers about Dragen har et kæmpestort hoved og kulsorte øjne.
How do compound words like kulsorte work in Danish?
This is an elative compound, where a specific noun is attached to an adjective to emphasize an extreme degree. Here, kul (coal) is combined with sort (black) to mean 'as black as coal' or 'pitch black'. It is a very common way in Danish to make descriptions more vivid than just using meget (very).
Why is there a -t on kæmpestort and an -e on kulsorte?
Even though these are compound words, the adjective part at the end still has to agree with the noun it describes. Kæmpestor gets a -t because it describes the neuter singular noun et hoved. Kulsort gets an -e because it describes the plural noun øjne.
Is kæmpe a noun or an adjective in the word kæmpestort?
Originally, en kæmpe is a noun meaning 'a giant'. In modern Danish, kæmpe- is frequently attached to adjectives to mean 'giant' or 'extremely' (like kæmpestor or kæmpefin). It acts as an intensifier to create an absolute degree, exactly like how kul- is used in kulsorte.
Just to refresh, is øjne an irregular plural?
Yes, the singular is et øje (an eye). The plural øjne is irregular, changing both the stem and the ending. Body parts in Danish often have irregular plurals, so this is a great one to keep fresh in your memory.