Breakdown of Efter operationen skal hun hvile sig.
hun
she
skulle
to have to / must / to be going to
efter
after
hvile sig
to rest
Questions & Answers about Efter operationen skal hun hvile sig.
Why is the word order skal hun instead of hun skal?
Because Danish follows the V2 rule, meaning the main verb must be the second piece of information in the sentence. Since this sentence starts with the time phrase Efter operationen, the verb skal must come next, swapping places with the subject hun.
Why do we need the word sig at the end?
In Danish, when a person takes a physical rest, the verb is reflexive: at hvile sig (literally "to rest oneself"). Since the subject here is hun (she), the matching reflexive pronoun is sig. If it were "I have to rest", it would be Jeg skal hvile mig.
Doesn't skal usually mean "will"? Why does it translate to "has to" here?
While skal is often used to show future plans (like "will" or "going to"), its original and very common meaning is obligation ("must" or "have to"). In this context, resting after a surgery is a requirement or a doctor's order, so skal translates best as "has to".