Jeg er færdig med opgaven og kan nu læse bogen.

I am finished with the task and can now read the book.

Breakdown of Jeg er færdig med opgaven og kan nu læse bogen.

• jeg: I
• og: and
• være: to be
• læse: to read
• bogen: the book
• med: with
• nu: now
• opgaven: the task
• kunne: can
• færdig: finished

Questions & Answers about Jeg er færdig med opgaven og kan nu læse bogen.

Why do we say jeg er færdig med opgaven instead of jeg er færdig opgaven?

In Danish, færdig (finished) is almost always followed by med, which functions like "with" in English to show that you're done with something. So you use er færdig med opgaven (I am done with the assignment). The phrase færdig opgaven by itself would sound ungrammatical to a Danish speaker.

What is the function of og in this sentence?

Og means "and" in Danish, just as in English. It’s connecting two clauses: you’ve finished your assignment, and you can now read the book.

Why do we see kan nu læse bogen and not something like kan læse nu bogen?

Danish has a fairly strict word order. Typically, you’ll see an adverb like nu come right after the verb in the main clause. Here, kan is the modal verb, so the adverb nu comes after it and before læse. Placing nu after læse would sound awkward.

What does kan do in this sentence?

Kan is the Danish modal verb for "can" or "be able to." It indicates ability or possibility—so the speaker is able to read the book now that they have finished the assignment.

Why is the definite form bogen used here instead of en bog?

The sentence suggests the person already has a specific book in mind. In Danish, we use bogen (the book) when referring to a particular book. Using en bog (a book) would imply just any book in general. If you want to mention a specific book you plan to read, you use bogen.