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De reparerer cyklen hurtigt, og jeg får en kvittering ved kassen.

De reparerer cyklen hurtigt, og jeg får en kvittering ved kassen.
They repair the bike quickly, and I get a receipt at the counter.

Breakdown of De reparerer cyklen hurtigt, og jeg får en kvittering ved kassen.

jeg
I
og
and
en
a
få
to get
hurtigt
quickly
de
they
ved
at
reparere
to repair
cyklen
the bike
kvitteringen
the receipt
kassen
the counter
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Questions & Answers about De reparerer cyklen hurtigt, og jeg får en kvittering ved kassen.

Why does the sentence start with De? Does it mean they or the polite you?

De can mean either:

  • they (3rd person plural), or
  • You in the polite/formal form (like German Sie).

In this sentence, De reparerer cyklen hurtigt is most naturally understood as They repair the bike quickly, e.g., the staff at a shop. (Polite De is less common in everyday Danish, and you’d usually see more context if it were meant.)

Why is the verb reparerer not reparere? What tense is this?

Reparerer is present tense: (they) repair/are repairing.
The infinitive (dictionary form) is at reparere (to repair).

So:

  • at reparere = to repair
  • jeg reparerer / de reparerer = I repair / they repair

Danish present tense is typically formed with -r (though there are spelling adjustments in some verbs).

What’s the difference between cykel and cyklen?

cykel is an indefinite noun: a bike (though usually you’d say en cykel).
cyklen is definite: the bike.

Danish often marks definiteness by adding the article to the end:

  • en cykel = a bike
  • cyklen = the bike
Why is hurtigt placed after the object (cyklen)? Could it go somewhere else?

Yes. Hurtigt is an adverb (quickly) and it commonly comes after the object:

  • De reparerer cyklen hurtigt.

It can also appear earlier for emphasis or style, but the “neutral” placement is often after the object/complement. Putting it right after the verb can sound a bit more marked:

  • De reparerer hurtigt cyklen. (possible, but less neutral)
Why is there a comma before og? Is that required in Danish?

Often, yes—especially when og connects two independent clauses, each with its own subject and verb:

  • De reparerer cyklen hurtigt, og jeg får en kvittering ved kassen.

This is similar to English where a comma is commonly used before and joining two full clauses.

Why does the second clause say jeg får and not får jeg? When do Danes invert word order?

In a normal main clause starting with the subject, Danish is:

  • Subject + verb → jeg får

You get inversion (verb before subject) when something else is placed first (because Danish is a V2 language):

  • Ved kassen får jeg en kvittering. (= At the till, I get a receipt.)
  • I morgen får jeg en kvittering. (= Tomorrow, I get a receipt.)

But here the clause begins with jeg, so no inversion.

Does jeg får mean “I get” or “I will get”?

Jeg får is present tense and can mean:

  • I get / I’m getting, and sometimes
  • I will get (near-future meaning depends on context).

Danish often uses the present tense where English might use will, especially for arrangements or expected outcomes.

What’s the difference between en kvittering and kvitteringen?
  • en kvittering = a receipt (indefinite)
  • kvitteringen = the receipt (definite)

In your sentence, en kvittering suggests it’s not a specific, previously-mentioned receipt—just “a receipt (as usual).”

What does ved kassen literally mean, and why ved instead of på?

Ved means by/at/next to. Ved kassen is the common idiomatic way to say at the till/cash register/checkout.

På kassen would sound odd in standard Danish because på is more like on top of (physically on).

So:

  • ved kassen = at the checkout / at the register (normal)
  • på kassen = on the register (physical, unusual)
Why is it kassen and not en kasse?

Kassen is the definite form: the cash register / the checkout.
In many real-life situations (shops, repairs), Danish uses the definite form for places/functions assumed to be known in the context:

  • ved kassen = at the checkout (the one in the shop)

En kasse would usually mean a box (or “a cash register” in a more literal/less contextual way), and it doesn’t fit the common fixed phrase as well.

How is De pronounced compared to de? Is there a difference?

In speech, De (polite “you”) and de (“they”) are typically pronounced the same: roughly dee with a long vowel.
Capitalization is what distinguishes the polite form in writing, but spoken Danish relies on context.

Is reparere the most natural verb here, or would Danes say something else?

Reparere is perfectly normal and widely understood. Depending on context, Danes might also say:

  • De fikser cyklen (more informal: “They fix the bike”)
  • De ordner cyklen (also informal: “They sort out the bike”)

But reparere is a straightforward, neutral choice—especially for a shop/service setting.