Learn Hardcore Danish: Han glemmer altid sin gaffel, men husker næsten altid sin ske. - He always forgets his fork, but almost always remembers his spoon.

sin / sit / sine = reflexive possessive
- Refers back to the subject of the same clause.
hans / hendes / deres = non‑reflexive possessive
- Refers to someone else, not the subject.

In this sentence, the subject of both clauses is han, so the fork and spoon belong to that same he. Therefore you must use the reflexive form sin:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel = He forgets his own fork.
(Han) husker næsten altid sin ske = He remembers his own spoon.

If you said hans gaffel, it would usually be understood as some other man’s fork, not the subject’s.

Why is it sin in both sin gaffel and sin ske, and not sit or sine?

The choice sin / sit / sine depends on the noun that follows, not on the owner:

sin
- common gender singular (en‑words)
  - en gaffel → sin gaffel
  - en ske → sin ske
sit
- neuter gender singular (et‑words)
  - et glas → sit glas
sine
- all plurals (both genders)
  - gafler → sine gafler
  - skeer → sine skeer

Because gaffel and ske are both en‑words (common gender, singular), you must use sin with both of them.

Why does altid come after glemmer, and næsten altid after husker? Could they go before the verbs?

In normal main clauses, Danish is a verb‑second (V2) language:

Some element (often the subject)
Finite verb
Other elements (adverbs, objects, etc.)

So in a neutral sentence like this:

Han (subject)
glemmer / husker (finite verbs)
altid / næsten altid / sin gaffel / sin ske (rest)

That’s why you get:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel
(Han) husker næsten altid sin ske

Putting altid or næsten altid before the finite verb in a main clause (Han altid glemmer …) breaks the V2 rule and sounds ungrammatical in standard Danish.

Adverbs like altid, aldrig, ofte, sjældent, næsten altid usually go right after the finite verb in this kind of simple sentence.

Is Han altid glemmer sin gaffel acceptable?

No, not as a normal main clause.

Because of the V2 rule, the finite verb glemmer must be in second position:

✅ Han glemmer altid sin gaffel.
❌ Han altid glemmer sin gaffel.

You can put something other than the subject first, but the verb still stays second. For example:

✅ Sin gaffel glemmer han altid.
(Here sin gaffel is first, glemmer is still second.)

But Han altid glemmer … leaves glemmer in third position, which is wrong in a normal main clause.

Why is there a comma before men?

Men is a coordinating conjunction (like but in English) that joins two main clauses here:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel
(Han) husker næsten altid sin ske

Danish comma rules (both in the traditional and the “new” system) normally put a comma before a conjunction like men when it links two clauses:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel, men husker næsten altid sin ske.

So that comma is standard, and you should keep it in writing.

Why is han missing in the second clause after men?

The full, explicit version would be:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel, men han husker næsten altid sin ske.

In Danish, when two clauses are joined by a coordinating conjunction (og, men, eller), and they share the same subject, you can often leave out the repeated subject in the second clause if the meaning is clear.

So (Han) husker næsten altid sin ske is understood as:

Han husker næsten altid sin ske.

Both versions are grammatically correct; leaving out the repeated han just sounds a bit more natural and less repetitive.

Why don’t gaffel and ske have a definite ending (‑en) after sin?

Possessive pronouns in Danish (min, din, sin, vores, jeres, deres etc.) normally take the place of the article. Because of that, the noun stays in the indefinite form:

en gaffel → min gaffel / din gaffel / sin gaffel
(not min gaffelen / sin gaflen)
en ske → hans ske / sin ske
(not hans skeen / sin skeen)

So you say:

sin gaffel, sin ske

and not sin gaflen, sin skeen in standard usage.

Can I change the order of næsten altid? For example, han husker altid næsten sin ske?

In this context, only næsten altid is natural:

✅ (Han) husker næsten altid sin ske.
= He almost always remembers his spoon.

Næsten modifies altid here and the two words form one adverbial expression: næsten altid.

If you say:

❌ han husker altid næsten sin ske

it sounds wrong or at best very odd, as if altid were modifying something else and næsten were left hanging.

You can move the whole phrase næsten altid for emphasis:

Næsten altid husker han sin ske. (more focus on almost always)
Han husker sin ske næsten altid. (more focus on his spoon, slightly different nuance)

But you generally keep næsten directly next to altid.

Are glemmer and husker present tense? How do you express “is always forgetting” in Danish?

Yes, both glemmer and husker are present tense forms:

at glemme → (han) glemmer
at huske → (han) husker

Danish usually uses the simple present for:

general truths
habits and repeated actions
ongoing actions, when context makes it clear

So Han glemmer altid sin gaffel can cover both:

“He always forgets his fork.”
“He is always forgetting his fork.”

There is a progressive construction er ved at + infinitive, but it’s not used for this kind of habitual “always forgetting” meaning. You’d stick with the simple present here.

Could I move altid to the end: Han glemmer sin gaffel altid?

You can say:

Han glemmer sin gaffel altid.

It’s grammatically possible, but the neutral placement is after the verb:

Han glemmer altid sin gaffel.

Putting altid at the very end often adds a bit of emphasis or a slightly marked rhythm. For everyday, neutral speech and writing, keep altid (and næsten altid) just after the verb unless you have a specific reason to highlight it.