Jeg bor i en ny lejlighed i byen.

I live in a new apartment in the city.

Breakdown of Jeg bor i en ny lejlighed i byen.

• jeg: I
• bo: to live
• i: in
• en: a
• ny: new
• byen: the city
• lejligheden: the apartment

Questions & Answers about Jeg bor i en ny lejlighed i byen.

Why is the article en used before ny lejlighed, and how do I know which article to use?

In Danish, nouns have genders. The noun lejlighed (apartment) is a common gender noun, which means its indefinite article is en (similar to "a" in English). In the indefinite form, you combine the article en with the adjective ny (new) and the noun to say en ny lejlighed ("a new apartment"). Neuter nouns, on the other hand, take et as their indefinite article.

Why is byen used instead of by, and what is the difference between them?

The word by means "city" in its base (indefinite) form. When you want to refer to a specific city—using the equivalent of "the city"—Danish adds a suffix to form the definite noun. For by, this definite form is byen. Here, i byen means "in the city." If you wanted to say "in a city," you would use the indefinite form and say i en by.

What is the word order in this sentence, and how does it compare to English?

The sentence follows a typical Danish word order that closely resembles English. The subject Jeg ("I") comes first, followed by the verb bor ("live"). Next are two prepositional phrases: i en ny lejlighed ("in a new apartment") and i byen ("in the city"). Both phrases serve to describe where the subject lives. This subject-verb-prepositional phrase (or object) structure is common in both Danish and English.

How does the adjective ny work in this sentence? Does it change form?

In Danish, adjectives generally come before the noun they modify, just like in English. The adjective ny (new) appears directly before lejlighed (apartment). In the indefinite form, adjectives typically remain in their base form when used with common gender nouns. If the noun were definite or plural, the adjective might take an ending (for example, den nye lejligheden for "the new apartment"), but in this sentence, the indefinite form en ny lejlighed is perfectly standard.

Why is the preposition i used twice in the sentence? Is that common in Danish?

Yes, it is common in Danish to use the same preposition for different phrases when they each describe a separate locational aspect. In this sentence, the first i is part of i en ny lejlighed, which tells you the specific place of residence (the apartment). The second i introduces i byen, giving you additional information about the location (the city). Even though the preposition i appears twice, each instance clearly connects the subject to a different contextual detail.