Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen, må vi ringe til en håndværker i morgen.

Hvis means if and introduces a condition.

In this sentence, Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen sets up the condition for what happens next: if that situation is true, then we have to call a tradesperson tomorrow.

A learner might also compare hvis with når:

• hvis = if (conditional, not certain)
• når = when (expected or repeated)

So here hvis fits because the speaker is treating it as a possibility or condition, not as something definitely happening.

Afløb is the basic dictionary form, meaning drain.
Afløbet is the definite singular form: the drain.

Danish usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun:

• et afløb = a drain
• afløbet = the drain

This happens because afløb is a neuter noun (et-word), so the definite ending is -et.

Afløb usually means a drain, outlet, or waste pipe/drain opening—for example in a sink, shower, or floor.

In this sentence, it most naturally means the household drain is clogged again.

English learners may expect a more specific word like pipe or plughole, but Danish often uses afløb quite naturally in this kind of context.

Here er stoppet means something like is blocked / has become blocked.

This is not the same as har stoppet, which would usually mean has stopped in the sense of ceased doing something. For example:

• Motoren er stoppet can mean the engine has stopped / is no longer running.
• Han har stoppet arbejdet means he has stopped the work.

With afløbet er stoppet, Danish is describing the state/result of the drain: it is blocked.

In everyday Danish, this is a natural way to talk about a clogged drain.

Yes. Stoppet is the past participle of stoppe.

But in this sentence it functions more like part of a resultative/passive-style expression:

• afløbet er stoppet = the drain is blocked / has got blocked

So even though it comes from the verb stoppe, the whole phrase describes a condition, not an action being actively done by someone right now.

Igen means again, and its position here is very natural in Danish.

• afløbet er stoppet igen = the drain is blocked again

Placing igen after stoppet makes it modify the whole situation: this has happened another time.

Danish adverb placement can be flexible, but this order is the normal, idiomatic one here.

Grammatically, må is the present tense of måtte, but in this sentence it does not mean polite permission like English may.

Here it means something closer to:

• must
• have to
• will have to

So må vi ringe til en håndværker i morgen is best understood as:

• we’ll have to call a tradesperson tomorrow

In Danish, må can express:

• permission: Du må gerne gå = You may / You’re allowed to go
• necessity/conclusion: Vi må ringe... = We have to call...

Context tells you which meaning is intended.

Because må is a modal verb, and modal verbs in Danish are followed by the bare infinitive.

So:

• må ringe
• kan komme
• skal arbejde
• vil købe

not:

• må at ringe ❌

This is similar to English:

• must call
• can come
• will buy

not:

• must to call ❌

This is because of Danish V2 word order in main clauses.

The sentence begins with a subordinate clause:

• Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen

After that, the main clause follows. In Danish main clauses, the finite verb usually comes in second position. Since the first position is effectively occupied by the whole if-clause, the verb comes before the subject:

• Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen, må vi ringe ...

Compare:

• Vi må ringe til en håndværker i morgen.
• I morgen må vi ringe til en håndværker.
• Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen, må vi ringe til en håndværker i morgen.

So this inversion is completely normal.

Because Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen is a subordinate clause, and it is followed by the main clause.

In standard Danish punctuation, a subordinate clause is separated from the main clause with a comma here:

• Hvis afløbet er stoppet igen, må vi ringe til en håndværker i morgen.

This comma helps show the structure clearly.

After ringe (to call / phone), Danish uses til when you mean calling a person or place by telephone:

• ringe til lægen = call the doctor
• ringe til min mor = call my mother
• ringe til en håndværker = call a tradesperson

So til is required here.

Also, en håndværker is indefinite because the speaker means some tradesperson, not one specific person already known in the conversation.

Håndværker is a broad word meaning craftsman / tradesperson / repair worker.

In real life, a Danish speaker might also say something more specific, such as:

• en VVS’er = a plumber/heating/sanitation technician
• en rørlægger = plumber

But håndværker is still perfectly understandable if the speaker just means someone who can come fix it.

I morgen means tomorrow and gives the time of the action ringe.

In this sentence it comes at the end:

• må vi ringe til en håndværker i morgen

That is a very normal placement.

It can also be moved for emphasis:

• I morgen må vi ringe til en håndværker.

Both are grammatical, but the original version is neutral and natural.

Because Danish, like English, often uses the present tense to talk about the future when the time is clear from context.

Here the future meaning is shown by i morgen:

• må vi ringe ... i morgen = we’ll have to call ... tomorrow

So even though må is formally present tense, the sentence clearly refers to a future action.

In theory, må vi ringe could look like may we call, but in this sentence that reading is very unlikely.

Because of the context—if the drain is blocked again—the natural interpretation is necessity:

• we’ll have to call a tradesperson tomorrow

If Danish wanted to ask permission more clearly, it would usually sound different in context, often with rising intonation in speech or a different surrounding situation.

So here a learner should understand må as must / have to, not may.