Learn Hardcore Danish: Min veninde ser sjældent fjernsyn, fordi hun hellere vil læse. - My female friend rarely watches TV, because she would rather read.

Because the sentence talks about a female friend, veninde is the most natural word.
You could say Min ven ser sjældent fjernsyn if you either mean a male friend, or you are using ven in a more gender‑neutral way (which some speakers do, especially younger ones), but veninde clearly signals that the friend is female.

Why is it min veninde and not mit veninde or mine veninde?

The possessive pronoun (my) agrees with the grammatical gender and number of the noun:

min for common gender (en‑words), singular
mit for neuter gender (et‑words), singular
mine for all plurals

veninde is an en‑word (common gender: en veninde), so you must use min:

min veninde = my (female) friend
mit fjernsyn = my TV set (because fjernsyn is an et-word)
mine venner = my friends (plural)

Why is the word order ser sjældent fjernsyn and not sjældent ser fjernsyn?

In a normal main clause, Danish uses verb-second word order:

Subject: Min veninde
Finite verb: ser
Adverb: sjældent
Object: fjernsyn

So the pattern is: subject – verb – adverb – object.

Sjældent ser fjernsyn on its own would be wrong word order in standard Danish.
You could front the adverb if you also move the subject:

Sjældent ser min veninde fjernsyn.
(Still verb‑second: ser stays in second position.)

But then the sentence sounds more marked/emphatic, like stressing how rare it is.

Why is there no article before fjernsyn? Why not et fjernsyn?

Ser fjernsyn is an idiomatic expression meaning to watch TV (in general), not to look at a specific TV set.

Min veninde ser sjældent fjernsyn.
= She rarely watches TV (as an activity).

If you say ser et fjernsyn, it would literally mean she is looking at a TV set (a particular piece of equipment), which is unusual unless you are talking about a specific object, e.g.:

Hun kigger på et fjernsyn i butikken.
= She is looking at a TV in the shop.

So:

se fjernsyn = watch TV (the medium)
et fjernsyn = a TV set (the device)

Why is it ser fjernsyn and not kigger på fjernsyn or something with a preposition?

With TV, Danish uses the verb se (see) without a preposition:

se fjernsyn
se TV (also common, often written se tv)

Kigge på means look at, and is not normally used for watching TV as an activity:

Hun kigger på fjernsynet.
= She is looking at the TV set (e.g., checking the screen or the design).

So for watching TV as entertainment, the natural expression is se fjernsyn, not kigge på fjernsyn.

What exactly does sjældent mean, and why is it placed after ser?

Sjældent is a frequency adverb meaning rarely / seldom.

In a main clause, sentence adverbs like sjældent, ofte, aldrig usually come after the finite verb:

Min veninde ser sjældent fjernsyn.
Jeg læser ofte om aftenen.
Han kommer aldrig til tiden.

So the typical pattern is:

subject – finite verb – adverb – rest of the sentence

Why is there a comma before fordi?

Fordi introduces a subordinate clause (a dependent clause) that gives a reason: fordi hun hellere vil læse.

Danish comma rules:

Traditional rule: always put a comma before subordinate clauses → …, fordi hun hellere vil læse.
Newer rule (since 2004): you may omit that comma in many cases → Min veninde ser sjældent fjernsyn fordi hun hellere vil læse.

Both with and without the comma are accepted today, but many Danes still prefer to keep the comma before fordi.

Could you also use da instead of fordi here?

You could say:

Min veninde ser sjældent fjernsyn, da hun hellere vil læse.

But fordi and da are not completely interchangeable:

fordi = because (neutral, most common for giving reasons)
da = because / since (often used when the reason is already known, or in a more narrative / written style)

In everyday speech, fordi is the default.
Da can sound a bit more formal, literary, or like the speaker assumes you already know or accept the reason.

Why is it fordi hun hellere vil læse and not fordi hun vil hellere læse?

In subordinate clauses (after fordi, at, som, etc.), the sentence adverb comes before the finite verb:

fordi hun hellere vil læse
subject – adverb – finite verb – infinitive

In a main clause, the finite verb must be in second position, so the adverb comes after the verb:

Hun vil hellere læse.
subject – finite verb – adverb – infinitive

So:

Main clause: Hun vil hellere læse.
Subordinate clause: … fordi hun hellere vil læse.

Fordi hun vil hellere læse breaks the standard subordinate‑clause word order, so it is considered incorrect.

What is the function of hellere vil here? Why not just fordi hun vil læse?

Vil læse alone means wants to read.

Hellere is a comparative adverb meaning rather / preferably, so:

hun vil læse = she wants to read
hun vil hellere læse / hun hellere vil læse = she would rather read (she prefers reading to something else)

In this sentence, the contrast is between watching TV and reading:

She rarely watches TV, because she would rather read.

Without hellere, the idea of preference instead of TV is much weaker.
Hellere is normally used together with a modal verb like vil / ville:

Jeg vil hellere blive hjemme. = I would rather stay home.
Vi ville hellere tage toget. = We would rather take the train.

Why is læse at the end of the clause?

In both main and subordinate clauses, Danish tends to place the infinitive (and other non‑finite verb forms) later in the clause, after the finite verb and most adverbs:

Hun vil læse.
Hun vil hellere læse.
… fordi hun hellere vil læse.

In subordinate clauses, this often means:

subject – sentence adverb – finite verb – objects/other info – non‑finite verb(s)

So læse naturally goes at the end of fordi hun hellere vil læse.

Does læse mean only to read, or can it also mean to study?

Læse primarily means to read, but it is also used in the sense to study (at a school/university), especially when paired with a field or place:

Hun kan godt lide at læse. = She likes to read.
Hun læser medicin. = She is studying medicine.
Han læser på universitetet. = He studies at the university.

In fordi hun hellere vil læse, without more context, the natural interpretation is because she would rather read (books, etc.) than watch TV.

How do you pronounce sjældent and fjernsyn?

Approximate pronunciations:

sjældent ≈ /ˈɕɛlən(d)/
- sj is like a soft sh or hy sound (somewhere between English sh and y).
- The d is very soft or not clearly pronounced; the final t is often not released in casual speech.
fjernsyn ≈ /ˈfjæɐ̯nsyːn/
- fj starts with an f plus a y‑ish glide.
- r affects the vowel, giving that typical Danish æɐ̯ sound in fjern.
- y is the front rounded vowel, like the French u in lune or German ü in Tür.

You do not pronounce every written consonant strongly; Danish has many reduced and softened sounds compared to English spelling expectations.