Jeg ser månen, og den lyser smukt i natten.

I see the moon, and it shines beautifully in the night.

Breakdown of Jeg ser månen, og den lyser smukt i natten.

• jeg: I
• og: and
• i: in
• se: to see
• månen: the moon
• natten: the night
• lyse: to shine
• den: it
• smukt: beautiful

Questions & Answers about Jeg ser månen, og den lyser smukt i natten.

Why do we use den instead of det to refer back to månen?

In Danish, månen is a common gender noun (an en word), so the pronoun referring to it is also den. If it were a neuter gender noun (an et word), then you would use det.

Why is månen written with an -en ending rather than just måne?

The -en suffix makes the noun definite in Danish. måne means moon in an indefinite sense, while månen means the moon.

Can I use skinner instead of lyser?

You can, but there’s a slight difference in nuance. skinner generally means shines, while lyser can imply gives off light in a more direct sense. Here, lyser emphasizes that the moon is emitting light.

Why is it smukt and not smuk?

smukt is the adverbial form describing how the moon lights up the night (in a beautiful way). If you use smuk, you’re describing a noun, but here smukt serves as a descriptor of the verb lyser.

Is there a difference between using i natten and using om natten?

Yes. om natten means at night in a general sense. i natten can give a more specific, immediate, or poetic sense of in the night. In this sentence, i natten emphasizes the actual nighttime scene you’re observing.