Breakdown of Feberen falder, når medicinen virker.
når
when
medicinen
the medicine
virke
to work
feberen
the fever
Questions & Answers about Feberen falder, når medicinen virker.
Why does feber become feberen here?
Danish often uses the definite form when talking about the specific fever the person has right now.
- feber = fever (in general / as a concept)
- feberen = the fever (the one we’re talking about)
The definite is made by adding -en to common-gender nouns: feber + en → feberen.
What does falder literally mean, and why is it used with fever?
at falde literally means to fall. Danish commonly uses it metaphorically for things that go down: temperature, prices, fever, etc.
So Feberen falder is the natural Danish way to say the fever goes down / decreases.
Is falder present tense? Why not a future form like vil falde?
Yes, falder is present tense. Danish uses the present tense a lot for general statements and typical results, similar to English:
- Feberen falder, når medicinen virker. = The fever goes down when the medicine works.
You can use vil falde if you want a more explicit prediction: - Feberen vil falde, når medicinen virker. = The fever will go down once the medicine works.
What’s the role of når here, and how is it different from hvis?