Optikeren tilpasser næsepuden.

Because optikeren is the definite singular form of optiker.

• optiker = optician / an optician
• optikeren = the optician

In Danish, the definite article is often added to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word like the in English.

Tilpasser is the present tense of the verb tilpasse.

• tilpasse = to adjust / adapt / fit
• tilpasser = adjusts / is adjusting

In Danish, the present tense is often formed by adding -r to the infinitive:

• at tilpasse = to adjust
• tilpasser = adjusts

Because Danish usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun.

• næsepude = a nose pad
• næsepuden = the nose pad

So instead of saying something like the nose pad with a separate article, Danish uses the ending -n or -en on the noun.

It is a compound noun:

• næse = nose
• pude = pad / cushion

So næsepude literally means nose pad.

Then næsepuden means the nose pad.

This is very typical in Danish: two nouns are often joined into one compound word.

Because Danish does not normally stack the full noun ending and the article ending in that way.

The base noun is næsepude, but the definite singular form becomes næsepuden. The final form is shaped according to Danish noun patterns, not by simply adding -en mechanically to the whole word.

So you should learn it as:

• næsepude = a nose pad
• næsepuden = the nose pad

No, this sentence uses the basic Danish word order:

Subject + verb + object

• Optikeren = subject
• tilpasser = verb
• næsepuden = object

So it works very much like English:

• The optician adjusts the nose pad.

Yes. Tilpasse can mean several related things depending on context:

• adjust
• adapt
• tailor
• fit

In this sentence, because the object is næsepuden, the most natural English meaning is adjusts or fits the nose pad.

A rough guide for an English speaker would be:

• Optikeren ≈ op-TI-keh-ren
• tilpasser ≈ til-PAS-ser
• næsepuden ≈ NEH-seh-poo-then

A few helpful notes:

• æ sounds somewhat like the vowel in cat, though not exactly.
• The d in puden is usually a soft Danish d, not a strong English d.
• Danish pronunciation is often less fully pronounced than spelling suggests, so listening to native audio is especially useful.

Yes, they often do, but Danish can still use the singular if one specific nose pad is being adjusted, or if the sentence is just giving a simple example.

If you wanted the plural, you would use a different form, for example:

• næsepuder = nose pads
• næsepuderne = the nose pads

So the sentence as written specifically says the nose pad.

The indefinite forms are:

• en optiker = an optician
• en næsepude = a nose pad

The sentence uses the definite forms instead:

• optikeren = the optician
• næsepuden = the nose pad

Yes. Optiker takes en in the singular:

• en optiker
• optikeren

The same is true for næsepude:

• en næsepude
• næsepuden

So both nouns in this sentence are common gender nouns in Danish.

You would normally invert the subject and the verb:

• Optikeren tilpasser næsepuden. = The optician adjusts the nose pad.
• Tilpasser optikeren næsepuden? = Is the optician adjusting the nose pad? / Does the optician adjust the nose pad?

This verb-second pattern is very important in Danish.