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Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen, når hun er træt.

Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen, når hun er træt.
She adds sugar to the coffee when she is tired.

Breakdown of Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen, når hun er træt.

være
to be
når
when
til
to
hun
she
kaffen
the coffee
sukkeret
the sugar
træt
tired
tilsætte
to add
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Questions & Answers about Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen, når hun er træt.

Why is it tilsætter and not tilsætte?

Tilsætte is the infinitive (the dictionary form: to add). Tilsætter is the present tense form used with hun:

  • at tilsætte = to add
  • hun tilsætter = she adds / she is adding (often habitual)
What’s the difference between tilsætter and more basic verbs like putter or kommer?

Tilsætter is a slightly more “formal/precise” verb meaning adds (an ingredient/substance to something), often used in recipes, food/drink, or mixing contexts.

  • Hun tilsætter sukker sounds like deliberately adding an ingredient.
  • Hun putter sukker i kaffen is more everyday/casual: she puts sugar in the coffee.
    Both can be correct; tilsætter is just more “add as an ingredient”.
Why does Danish say sukker without an article (no et or noget)?

Because sukker here is used as an uncountable/mass noun, like sugar in English. In Danish you often don’t use an article in this kind of general “substance” meaning:

  • Hun tilsætter sukker = She adds sugar
    If you mean some sugar explicitly, you could say noget sukker.
Why is it til kaffen and not i kaffen?

Both can be used, but they highlight slightly different perspectives:

  • til kaffen = added to the coffee (focus on “addition to a thing/serving”)
  • i kaffen = put into the coffee (focus on location: “in”)
    With verbs like tilsætte, til is very common.
What does kaffen mean exactly, and why is it not kaffe?

kaffen is the definite form: the coffee. Danish often uses the definite form where English might say coffee generally, especially when it’s a specific instance (the coffee she’s drinking/serving).

  • kaffe = coffee (indefinite/general)
  • kaffen = the coffee (definite)
Why is the comma used before når?

In Danish, it’s standard to put a comma before a subordinate clause introduced by conjunctions like når, at, fordi, etc. So:

  • Main clause: Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen
  • Subordinate clause: når hun er træt
    The comma marks that boundary.
Why does the word order change after når?

Because når introduces a subordinate clause. In Danish subordinate clauses, the finite verb does not move to second position (no V2). It stays after the subject (and usually after any sentence adverbs).
So you get:

  • når hun er træt (conjunction + subject + verb + complement)
    not når er hun træt.
What’s the difference between når and da in this kind of sentence?

når typically refers to something that happens generally/repeatedly or in the future:

  • når hun er træt = when(ever) she is tired
    da is usually for a single event in the past:
  • da hun var træt = when she was tired (that time)
Why is it er træt and not something like er trætt or er trætte?

træt is the common-form adjective used with singular nouns/pronouns like hun.
Adjective agreement in Danish works like this:

  • hun er træt (singular)
  • de er trætte (plural)
  • et barn er træt vs et træ t? (Different rule: -t form is used with et-words in attributive position, but predicate adjectives often use common form; træt is standard here.)
Is Hun tilsætter sukker til kaffen present tense meaning “right now” or “in general”?

It can be either, but with når hun er træt it strongly suggests a habit/general pattern: she does this whenever she’s tired. Danish present tense often covers both:

  • habitual/generic actions
  • actions happening now (context decides)
How would I make this sentence negative?

You’d normally place ikke after the finite verb in the main clause:

  • Hun tilsætter ikke sukker til kaffen, når hun er træt.
    Meaning: she doesn’t add sugar… when she’s tired.
Could I move the når-clause to the front, and what happens to word order?

Yes. If the subordinate clause comes first, the main clause follows V2 rules, so you get inversion (verb before subject):

  • Når hun er træt, tilsætter hun sukker til kaffen.
    Notice tilsætter comes before hun in the main clause after the fronted clause.