De vil se originalen, så jeg tager ikke kun en kopi med.

Here De is the formal/polite form of you in Danish.

A lowercase de usually means they, but an uppercase De is a traditional way to show polite address in writing.

So in this sentence, De vil se originalen means something like polite you want to see the original.

A few notes:

• De can be used for one person or more than one person in formal address.
• In modern Danish, this form is much less common than it used to be. Most everyday Danish uses du instead.

In this sentence, vil is best understood as want to.

The verb ville can sometimes overlap with English will, but very often it expresses:

• desire
• intention
• willingness

So De vil se originalen is naturally understood as you want to see the original, not simply a future statement like you will see the original.

Because after a modal verb in Danish, you normally use the bare infinitive without at.

So:

• vil se
• kan komme
• skal arbejde
• må gå

Not:

• vil at se

This is very similar to English:

• want to see uses to
• but will see, can come, must go do not

Danish modal verbs work like the English ones that take a bare infinitive.

Because Danish usually marks the definite form by adding an ending to the noun.

Here the basic noun is original and the definite singular form is originalen, meaning the original.

This is a very common Danish pattern:

• en bog → bogen
• en kopi → kopien
• en original → originalen

So originalen is not a separate word for the original; it is the noun with the definite ending attached.

Because en kopi is indefinite: a copy.

Danish distinguishes:

• en kopi = a copy
• kopien = the copy

So the sentence contrasts:

• originalen = a specific original already known in the situation
• en kopi = just a copy, not a specific one

That matches the logic of the sentence.

Tage med means take along / bring along.

In this sentence, the verb is split:

• tager = the finite verb
• med = the particle

This is similar to English phrasal verbs:

• take ... along
• bring ... along

So:

• jeg tager en kopi med = I’m bringing/taking a copy along

In Danish main clauses, that little particle often appears later in the sentence instead of directly next to the verb.

Yes. Ikke kun means not only.

So:

• jeg tager ikke kun en kopi med

means:

• I’m not only bringing a copy along

The idea is that a copy is not the only thing being brought; the speaker is implying that the original is coming too.

The word order is normal:

• jeg = subject
• tager = finite verb
• ikke = sentence negation
• kun en kopi = only a copy

Because så here is a conjunction meaning so, not an adverb meaning then.

In:

• De vil se originalen, så jeg tager ikke kun en kopi med

så connects two main clauses:

1. De vil se originalen
2. jeg tager ikke kun en kopi med

Since the second clause itself begins with the subject jeg, the order is jeg tager.

Compare this with adverbial så = then:

• Så tager jeg en kopi med. = Then I’ll bring a copy along.

There, så is part of the clause, so it takes first position and the verb comes before the subject: tager jeg.

Danish often uses tage ... med in places where English would naturally say bring.

So even though the literal pieces look like take ... along, the natural English translation in context may be bring.

This is very normal Danish usage. The exact English choice often depends on viewpoint:

• tage med = take along / bring along
• English may prefer bring if the movement is toward the listener or destination

So the Danish is idiomatic, even if it does not match English word-for-word.