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Hun siger, at hun har travlt, fordi hun skal nå et møde.

Hun siger, at hun har travlt, fordi hun skal nå et møde.
She says she’s busy because she has to make it to a meeting.
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Questions & Answers about Hun siger, at hun har travlt, fordi hun skal nå et møde.

Why is at used after siger?

In Danish, at often introduces an embedded clause (a “that-clause”), much like English that:
Hun siger, at … = She says (that) …
You can sometimes omit at in informal Danish, especially in speech, but in writing it’s common and clear to include it.

Why does Danish repeat hun ( Hun siger, at hun … ) instead of leaving it out?

Danish normally requires an explicit subject in each clause. So the embedded clause needs its own subject:

  • Hun siger, at hun har travlt (correct)
    Omitting the second hun would sound ungrammatical.
Why are there so many commas in the sentence?

Danish traditionally uses commas to mark subordinate clauses. Here you have two subordinate clauses: 1) at hun har travlt (introduced by at)
2) fordi hun skal nå et møde (introduced by fordi)

So commas separate the main clause and each subordinate clause:
Hun siger, at hun har travlt, fordi …

(You’ll also see different comma styles in Danish, but this comma placement is very common.)

What is the structure of the whole sentence?

It’s a main clause plus two subordinate clauses:

  • Main clause: Hun siger, …
  • Subordinate clause 1 (content): at hun har travlt
  • Subordinate clause 2 (reason): fordi hun skal nå et møde

So it’s basically: She says [that she’s busy] [because she has to make it to a meeting].

Why is the word order at hun har travlt and not something like at har hun travlt?

In Danish subordinate clauses, you do not use V2 word order (the “verb-second” pattern common in main clauses). Instead, the normal order is subject before the finite verb:

  • Subordinate: at hun har travlt (subject hun
    • verb har)
      Compare with a main-clause style question/order, which would be different.
What does har travlt literally mean, and why is it used for “busy”?

Literally, at have travlt means to have it busy / to be in a hurry, but idiomatically it’s the standard way to say to be busy in Danish.
You generally say:

  • Jeg har travlt = I’m busy
    rather than using an adjective equivalent to English busy.
Why does it say skal nå et møde—what does nå add?

Skal expresses obligation/necessity (have to / need to). Nå means to reach / make it (in time).
So skal nå et møde means: has to make it to a meeting (on time), often implying time pressure.

Could I replace fordi with something else?

Often yes, depending on nuance:

  • fordi = because (common, neutral)
  • da = since/as (often when the reason is assumed to be known or “background”)
  • for = for (more like an explanation added after; usually links main clauses rather than a typical subordinate clause)

In this sentence, fordi is the straightforward choice.

Does fordi affect word order in the clause that follows?

Yes. Fordi introduces a subordinate clause, so you use subordinate clause word order (subject before the finite verb):

  • fordi hun skal nå et møde (subject hun
    • verb skal)

That’s why you don’t get main-clause V2 effects after fordi.

Why is it et møde and not en møde?

Because møde is a neuter noun in Danish, so it takes:

  • et møde (indefinite singular)
  • mødet (definite singular: the meeting)

Gender has to be learned per noun, and møde happens to be et-.

Could the order of the “because” part change?

Yes. You can front the reason clause for emphasis, and then the main clause follows with main-clause word order:

  • Original: Hun siger, at hun har travlt, fordi hun skal nå et møde.
  • Fronted reason: Fordi hun skal nå et møde, siger hun, at hun har travlt.

Both are natural; fronting puts more focus on the reason.

Is Hun siger the best verb here, or could it be Hun fortæller?

Both are possible, but they’re not identical:

  • siger = says (neutral reporting of words/claim)
  • fortæller = tells (often implies giving information to someone; it more strongly suggests an addressee)

If you want to include the listener, you might say:
Hun fortæller mig, at hun har travlt … = She tells me that she’s busy …