Questions & Answers about Vi sidder på terrassen og drikker kaffe.
Why are sidder and drikker both in the present tense?
Because Danish often uses the simple present to describe what is happening right now.
So Vi sidder på terrassen og drikker kaffe can mean:
- We are sitting on the terrace and drinking coffee
- not just a general habit, but also a current ongoing action
Unlike English, Danish usually does not need a special form like are sitting or are drinking for this.
Examples:
- Jeg læser = I read / I am reading
- Hun sover = She sleeps / She is sleeping
The exact meaning usually comes from the context.
Why is there no separate word for are, like in English we are sitting?
In English, ongoing actions often use be + -ing:
we are sitting, they are drinking, etc.
Danish usually does not build the present progressive that way. Instead, it just uses the present tense:
- vi sidder = we sit / we are sitting
- vi drikker = we drink / we are drinking
So Danish is structurally simpler here. The idea of an ongoing action is often understood from the situation itself.
What is the role of here? Does it just mean , or does it add something else?