Breakdown of I praksis er det chefen der bestemmer.
være
to be
det
it (neuter)
chefen
the boss
der
who, which (relative, subject)
bestemme
to be in charge, to determine
i praksis
in practice
Questions & Answers about I praksis er det chefen der bestemmer.
Why is the word order er det instead of det er?
Because the sentence starts with the adverbial phrase I praksis. Danish follows the V2 rule, meaning the finite verb must be the second element in the main clause. To keep the verb in the second position, the verb er swaps places with the subject det.
Could I use som instead of der in this sentence?
Yes, but der is the most natural choice here. You can use der because the relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause (the boss is the one doing the deciding). While som works for both subjects and objects, Danes strongly prefer der when it acts as the subject.
Why use the structure det er... der instead of just saying I praksis bestemmer chefen?
This structure is called a cleft sentence, and it is used to add emphasis. By framing it as det er chefen der bestemmer (it is the boss who decides), you specifically highlight the boss as the one calling the shots, contrasting with whoever else might theoretically be in charge on paper.
Why does bestemmer translate to "is in charge" here, when it usually means "decides"?
The verb at bestemme does literally mean "to decide" or "to determine." However, in everyday Danish, saying that someone bestemmer is the standard, idiomatic way to express that they have the final authority, make the rules, or are generally "in charge."
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