Der er et lille hul bag billedet, så jeg henter boremaskinen senere.

Der er is the standard Danish way to say there is or there are.

Here der does not mean a physical place. It is a dummy subject, just like English there in there is a problem.

So:

• Der er et lille hul = There is a small hole

This is one of the most common Danish sentence patterns.

Because hul is a neuter noun, so it takes et in the indefinite singular.

In Danish, singular nouns are either:

• common gender: take en
• neuter: take et

So:

• et hul = a hole
• not en hul

You simply have to learn the gender of each noun together with the noun itself.

Normally, Danish adjectives often change form depending on the noun.

For example:

• en stor bil
• et stort hus

So with a neuter noun, learners often expect an extra -t.

But lille is a very common irregular form. It usually stays lille in the singular, even with an et noun:

• en lille bil
• et lille hul

So et lille hul is completely correct.

In Danish, the definite article is usually added to the end of the noun.

So:

• et billede = a picture
• billedet = the picture

and:

• en boremaskine = a drill
• boremaskinen = the drill

The ending depends on the noun’s gender:

• common gender often gets -en
• neuter often gets -et

That is why you see:

• billedet from et billede
• boremaskinen from en boremaskine

Because the sentence is talking about a specific picture, not just any picture.

• bag billedet = behind the picture
• bag et billede = behind a picture

Using the definite form suggests that the speaker and listener both know which picture is meant, or that it is clear from the situation.

Here så means so, therefore, or as a result.

It links the two ideas:

• there is a small hole behind the picture
• so the speaker will fetch the drill later

So så shows consequence.

Be careful: så can also mean then, depending on context. Danish uses the same word for several related meanings.

This is a very useful word-order question.

In this sentence, så is being used as a conjunction meaning so/therefore. After a coordinating conjunction like that, the next clause keeps normal main-clause order:

• så jeg henter boremaskinen senere

Here the subject jeg comes before the verb henter.

But if så were being used more like an adverb meaning then, you could get:

• Så henter jeg boremaskinen

That version has a slightly different structure and feel.

So:

• ..., så jeg henter ... = ..., so I’m fetching / so I’ll fetch ...
• Så henter jeg ... = Then I’ll fetch ...

Because Danish often uses the present tense to talk about the future, especially when there is a time word that makes the future meaning clear.

Here the future idea is made clear by senere.

So:

• jeg henter boremaskinen senere

naturally means:

• I’ll fetch the drill later

This is very common in Danish. English does something similar sometimes, but Danish uses it even more freely.

Senere means later.

It is a time adverb, and in a neutral sentence it often comes toward the end:

• jeg henter boremaskinen senere

That placement sounds very natural.

You could also move it for emphasis:

• Senere henter jeg boremaskinen

That is still grammatical, but now later is more strongly highlighted.

Because the sentence contains two clauses:

• Der er et lille hul bag billedet
• så jeg henter boremaskinen senere

A comma is commonly used to separate clauses like this in Danish writing.

So the comma helps show the structure clearly.

Yes. Danish loves compound nouns.

Boremaskinen is built from:

• at bore = to drill
• maskine = machine

So boremaskine literally means something like drilling machine, which in normal English is just drill.

Then the definite ending is added:

• boremaskine = a drill
• boremaskinen = the drill

Learning to spot compounds is very helpful in Danish, because they appear everywhere.

Because Danish noun gender is lexical: each noun has its own gender, and you usually have to learn it individually.

Here:

• et billede = neuter
• en boremaskine = common gender

There is not always a simple logical reason. Some endings can give hints, but they are not fully reliable. That is why it is best to learn new nouns together with their article:

• et billede
• en boremaskine
• et hul