Jeg drikker mindre kaffe og køber færre aviser, når jeg arbejder hjemme.

Because Danish, like English, uses different words for less and fewer:

• mindre = less, used with uncountable nouns
• færre = fewer, used with countable plural nouns

So:

• kaffe is treated as an uncountable substance → mindre kaffe
• aviser means newspapers, which you can count → færre aviser

This is very similar to English: less coffee, but fewer newspapers.

They are comparative forms:

• lidt = little / a little
• mindre = less

and

• få = few
• færre = fewer

So the sentence is comparing the amount/number to some usual or previous situation:

• Jeg drikker mindre kaffe = I drink less coffee
• Jeg køber færre aviser = I buy fewer newspapers

Because Danish often leaves out the article when talking about things in general.

Here the speaker means coffee and newspapers as general categories, not specific ones:

• mindre kaffe = less coffee
• færre aviser = fewer newspapers

This works much like English:

• We say I drink less coffee, not usually I drink less the coffee
• We say I buy fewer newspapers, not I buy fewer the newspapers

If you wanted to refer to specific newspapers, the structure would be different.

Aviser is the plural of avis:

• en avis = a newspaper
• avisen = the newspaper
• aviser = newspapers
• aviserne = the newspapers

In the sentence, the plural is needed because færre goes with plural countable nouns: færre aviser = fewer newspapers.

Danish often uses the present tense for habitual actions or general truths, just like English does.

So this sentence means something like:

• whenever I work from home, I tend to drink less coffee and buy fewer newspapers

It is not necessarily about what is happening right this second. It describes a regular pattern.

Når is used for something that happens when/whenever a situation occurs, especially if it is seen as regular, repeated, or expected.

• når jeg arbejder hjemme = when/whenever I work from home

Hvis means if, and it usually introduces a condition:

• Hvis jeg arbejder hjemme, ... = If I work from home, ...

In this sentence, the idea is a repeated pattern, so når is the natural choice.

Yes. A very natural alternative is:

Når jeg arbejder hjemme, drikker jeg mindre kaffe og køber færre aviser.

That means the same thing.

The main difference is word order:

• After a subordinate clause at the beginning, Danish uses verb-second order in the main clause.
• So it becomes drikker jeg, not jeg drikker.

Compare:

• Jeg drikker mindre kaffe ..., når jeg arbejder hjemme.
• Når jeg arbejder hjemme, drikker jeg mindre kaffe ...

Both are correct.

In modern usage, arbejde hjemme often means work from home or work at home, depending on context.

• arbejder hjemme literally = works at home / is working at home
• In many situations, it is understood as working from home rather than going to the office

If you want to be more explicit, Danish can also use arbejde hjemmefra, which more clearly emphasizes from home.

So:

• jeg arbejder hjemme = I work at home / I work from home
• jeg arbejder hjemmefra = I work from home

This is a very common learner question.

• hjem often expresses movement toward home
• hjemme expresses location at home

Examples:

• Jeg går hjem. = I am going home.
• Jeg er hjemme. = I am at home.

So in your sentence, arbejder hjemme is correct because it describes where the action happens: at home.

Because Danish needs an explicit subject in the subordinate clause.

The sentence has two clauses:

1. Jeg drikker mindre kaffe og køber færre aviser
2. når jeg arbejder hjemme

The second clause still needs its own subject and verb:

• jeg arbejder

English does the same:

• when I work from home

So the repeated jeg is required.

Because the same subject, jeg, applies to both verbs.

So:

• Jeg drikker ... og køber ...

This is exactly like English:

• I drink ... and buy ...

You could repeat the subject, but it would usually sound unnecessary:

• Jeg drikker mindre kaffe, og jeg køber færre aviser.

That is grammatical, but less smooth unless you want extra emphasis.

Yes, mindre can sometimes mean smaller, depending on context, because it is the comparative form of lille in some uses. But in this sentence, it clearly means less, because it goes with kaffe, which is uncountable.

So here:

• mindre kaffe = less coffee

Not:

• smaller coffee

The noun usually makes the meaning clear.

Yes, both can be tricky for English speakers.

• færre contains the Danish æ, which is somewhat like the vowel in English cat, but not exactly
• arbejder often sounds more compressed in real speech than learners expect

A rough learner-friendly guide:

• færre ≈ FEHR-uh with a Danish-style vowel
• arbejder ≈ AR-bye-der in very rough approximation, though actual pronunciation is more reduced and Danish-sounding

The biggest challenge is not just the vowels, but also the smoother, less strongly pronounced syllables in natural Danish speech.

It most naturally describes a general habit or repeated situation.

The clues are:

• present tense: drikker, køber, arbejder
• når = when/whenever

So the meaning is essentially:

• whenever I work from home, I drink less coffee and buy fewer newspapers

If you wanted to describe one specific past occasion, the sentence would look different.