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Questions & Answers about Udgangen er til venstre.
Why is the word for "the exit" written as a single word, Udgangen?
In Danish, the word for "the" is attached to the end of the noun rather than being a separate word. The root word is udgang (exit), which is a common gender word (an en word). To say "the exit", you add -en to the end, making it udgangen.
Does the word udgangen break down into smaller parts?
Yes! The root word udgang is a compound made of ud (out) and gang (walk, passage, or hallway). A literal translation would be "the out-passage". You can also see this logic in indgang (entrance), which combines ind (in) with gang.
Why does the sentence use til instead of a literal translation for "on"?
In English you say "on the left", but Danish uses the fixed expression til venstre. You can think of it as pointing a direction: "to the left". You will also use this exact same pattern with the right side: til højre (on or to the right).
Does the word venstre change its ending if we talk about an et word or plural nouns?
No, venstre is an adjective that always keeps its -e ending. Unlike many other Danish adjectives, whether you are describing an en word, an et word, or plural nouns, this word stays exactly the same.