Hun studerer tre fag, men arbejder også i weekenden.

She studies three subjects but also works on the weekend.

Breakdown of Hun studerer tre fag, men arbejder også i weekenden.

• men: but
• hun: she
• også: also
• arbejde: to work
• i: on
• weekenden: the weekend
• studere: to study
• tre: three
• faget: the subject

Questions & Answers about Hun studerer tre fag, men arbejder også i weekenden.

Why is it Hun and not Hende at the beginning of the sentence?

Danish, like English, uses different pronouns for the subject and the object:

• Hun = she (subject form)
• Hende = her (object form)

In this sentence, Hun is the subject of studerer (the one doing the studying), so you must use the subject form Hun, not Hende.

You would use hende after a verb or preposition where it is the object, e.g.

• Jeg kan godt lide hende. = I like her.

Why can the subject hun be left out in the second part (… men arbejder også i weekenden)?

In coordinated clauses with the same subject, Danish often omits the repeated subject, especially in writing:

• Hun studerer tre fag, men arbejder også i weekenden.

The subject hun is understood to be the same in both parts:

• [Hun] studerer tre fag, men [hun] arbejder også i weekenden.

Including hun again is also correct:

• Hun studerer tre fag, men hun arbejder også i weekenden.

Leaving it out puts a bit more focus on the new information (arbejder også i weekenden).

What is the difference between studerer and læser in Danish?

Both can translate to study, but they are used slightly differently:

• Studere is more formal/academic and is often used about higher education or a field of study:

  • Hun studerer medicin. = She studies medicine (at university).

• Læse literally means to read, but it’s very commonly used to mean study too, especially in everyday speech:

  • Hun læser medicin. = She studies medicine.

In this sentence, Hun studerer tre fag could also be Hun læser tre fag. Both are acceptable; studerer just sounds a bit more directly “academic”.

What exactly does fag mean here, and why is it tre fag?

Fag is a neuter noun meaning subject (school/academic subject) or sometimes trade/profession. Here it clearly means school/uni subjects.

Forms of fag:

• Indefinite singular: et fag (a subject)
• Definite singular: faget (the subject)
• Indefinite plural: fag (subjects)
• Definite plural: fagene (the subjects)

So tre fag = three subjects (indefinite plural). The noun fag doesn’t change form in the plural here; the number tre already shows it’s plural.

Why is the verb before også in arbejder også? Where do adverbs like også normally go?

Danish has a fairly fixed order for “mid-position” adverbs such as også (also), ikke (not), aldrig (never), etc.

In a normal main clause, the finite verb goes in second position, and the adverb usually comes right after the verb (if the subject is before the verb):

• Hun arbejder også i weekenden.
  Subject – Verb – Adverb – (rest)

In the coordinated clause … men arbejder også i weekenden, the conjunction men doesn’t count as part of the clause when we talk about verb position. Inside the clause we have:

• arbejder (finite verb, 2nd position)
• også after the verb, following the usual pattern.

If you explicitly include the subject, the typical order is:

• Hun arbejder også i weekenden.

Placing også somewhere else (e.g. Hun også arbejder i weekenden) is wrong in standard Danish.

Why is the present tense studerer and arbejder used, when in English we might say “is studying” and “works / is working”?

Danish present tense is more general than English present tense: it can cover both English simple present and present continuous.

So:

• Hun studerer tre fag can mean

  • She studies three subjects (habitually) or
  • She is studying three subjects (right now/this term).

• Hun arbejder også i weekenden can mean

  • She also works on weekends (regularly) or
  • She is also working this weekend (depending on context).

Danish doesn’t have a special “-ing” form to mark continuous actions; you just use the plain present tense and let the context clarify the meaning.

Why is it i weekenden and not something like på weekenden or just weekend?

Danish uses specific prepositions with time expressions:

• i weekenden literally: in the weekend, but it means on/at the weekend.
• weekend normally appears with an article or in a fixed expression.

So:

• Jeg arbejder i weekenden. = I work at/on the weekend.
• Vi ses i weekenden. = See you this weekend / at the weekend.

Using på weekenden is not idiomatic Danish. The usual preposition for “weekend” in time expressions is i, not på.

Why is weekenden in the definite form (-en) here?

Weekend is a common-gender noun:

• Indefinite singular: en weekend (a weekend)
• Definite singular: weekenden (the weekend)
• Indefinite plural: weekender (weekends)
• Definite plural: weekenderne (the weekends)

In time expressions, Danish often uses the definite singular to mean “on/at the X (generally or this one)”, e.g.:

• i weekenden – at/on the weekend / this weekend / on weekends (context decides)
• om morgenen – in the morning (generally)
• om aftenen – in the evening

So i weekenden is a standard idiomatic phrase, not a reference to one specific, clearly identified weekend in the same way “the weekend” would often be in English. The interpretation (this weekend vs generally at weekends) depends heavily on context.

Does i weekenden mean “this weekend” or “on weekends in general”?

It can mean either, depending on the context and sometimes on intonation:

1. Habitual/general:

   • Hun arbejder også i weekenden.
     Often understood as: She also works on weekends (regularly).

2. Specific upcoming/past weekend:

   • Hvad laver du i weekenden?
     Usually: What are you doing this weekend?

If you want to clearly say every weekend, you can say:

• Hun arbejder i weekenderne. = She works on weekends (every/most weekends).

But in many everyday contexts, i weekenden alone is enough, and the listener uses the broader context to decide whether it’s about this weekend or weekends in general.

Why is there a comma before men in …, men arbejder også i weekenden?

Danish traditionally uses more commas than modern English, especially before conjunctions like men (but), og (and), for (for/because):

• Hun studerer tre fag, men arbejder også i weekenden.

Here, there are two main clauses being joined:

1. Hun studerer tre fag
2. (Hun) arbejder også i weekenden

Standard written Danish normally puts a comma before men when it connects two clauses.

Some newer “comma-light” styles exist, but in most teaching materials and exams, the comma before men in this kind of sentence is expected.

Is the word order Hun studerer tre fag following a specific rule?

Yes. Danish main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must be in second position in the clause.

In Hun studerer tre fag:

1. Hun = first element (subject)
2. studerer = finite verb (second element)
3. tre fag = the rest (object)

If you start with something other than the subject, the verb still stays in second position:

• I weekenden arbejder hun også.
  
  • I weekenden = first element
  • arbejder = finite verb (still second)
  • hun and også come after.

The second clause … men arbejder også i weekenden is a coordinated main clause and also follows V2 internally: arbejder is the finite verb and comes in second position in its clause.