Glas og metal skal sorteres for sig.

Glass and metal must be sorted separately.

Breakdown of Glas og metal skal sorteres for sig.

• og: and
• glasset: the glass
• skulle: must
• metallet: the metal

Questions & Answers about Glas og metal skal sorteres for sig.

What does skal mean here?

Here skal expresses obligation or requirement.

So in this kind of sentence, skal usually means something like:

• must
• has to
• sometimes should, depending on how strict the context is

On a recycling sign or instruction, skal is normally stronger than a friendly suggestion. It means this is the rule.

Why is it sorteres after skal?

Because after a modal verb like skal, Danish uses the infinitive of the main verb.

• active infinitive: sortere = to sort
• passive infinitive: sorteres = to be sorted

So:

• skal sortere = must sort
• skal sorteres = must be sorted

That means skal sorteres is a very normal way to say must be sorted.

What does the -s in sorteres mean?