Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud, ser min far også på hjulet, før vi kører videre.

Se ud is a very common Danish verb expression meaning to look / appear.

So:

• dækket ser dårligt ud = the tire looks bad
• literally, it is something like the tire sees out badly, but you should learn se ud as one unit

The ud is important. Without it, ser usually just means sees / looks at.

Compare:

• Dækket ser dårligt ud = The tire looks bad
• Min far ser på dækket = My father looks at the tire

So in this sentence, ser appears twice, but in two different expressions:

• ser ... ud = looks/appears
• ser på = looks at

Because Danish, like English, often builds different meanings by combining a basic verb with small particles or prepositions.

Here the base verb is se:

• se ud = look / appear
• se på = look at

So:

• et dæk ser dårligt ud = a tire looks bad
• min far ser også på hjulet = my father also looks at the wheel

This is very similar to English:

• look bad
• look at the wheel

It is best to learn these as separate patterns, not as one single meaning of se.

In the fixed expression ser godt/dårligt ud, Danish normally uses the -t form:

• ser godt ud
• ser dårligt ud

This is idiomatic and very common when talking about how something appears in a general sense.

However, Danish does not always use the -t form after se ud. With many personal descriptions, you often get an adjective instead:

• Han ser træt ud = He looks tired
• Hun ser glad ud = She looks happy

So for learners, the safest approach is:

• memorize godt and dårligt in this pattern
• notice that other words may behave differently

This is the difference between indefinite and definite reference.

• et dæk = a tire — any tire, not yet identified
• hjulet = the wheel — a specific wheel, understood from the context

The sentence first speaks generally:

• Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud = If a tire looks bad

Then it refers to the specific wheel connected with that tire:

• ser min far også på hjulet = my father also looks at the wheel

In Danish, definiteness is often shown by adding an ending to the noun:

• hjul = wheel
• hjulet = the wheel

This is because Danish is a V2 language in main clauses. That means the finite verb normally comes in the second position.

The sentence begins with a subordinate clause:

• Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud

After that whole clause, the main clause starts. Since the first position is already taken by the Hvis-clause, the verb comes next:

• ser min far også på hjulet

So the structure is:

1. Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud
2. ser
3. min far også på hjulet

If there were no fronted Hvis-clause, it would be:

• Min far ser også på hjulet

This is a very important Danish word-order pattern.

In this sentence, også means also / too and is placed in the normal position for sentence adverbs in a main clause.

Main clause:

• ser min far også på hjulet

Here:

• ser = finite verb
• min far = subject
• også = sentence adverb

This placement is very common in Danish.

Compare:

• Min far ser også på hjulet
• Nu ser min far også på hjulet
• Hvis ..., ser min far også på hjulet

So even though the word order changes because of V2, også still stays in its usual adverb position after the subject.

Because se på and se are not always the same.

• se noget often means see something
• se på noget often means look at something / examine something

So:

• Jeg ser hjulet = I see the wheel
• Jeg ser på hjulet = I look at the wheel

In this sentence, the father is not just noticing the wheel; he is actively checking it. That is why ser på fits better.

Because før introduces a subordinate clause, and subordinate clauses have different word order in Danish.

Main clause word order:

• Vi kører videre

Subordinate clause after før:

• før vi kører videre

In subordinate clauses, the subject usually comes before the finite verb in the normal way.

So:

• før vi kører videre = before we continue driving

This is the same kind of pattern you also see after words like:

• at
• fordi
• hvis
• når
• før

They are related, but not the same thing.

• dæk = tire
• hjul = wheel

In everyday speech, English speakers sometimes blur these a bit, but Danish keeps the distinction clear.

Very roughly:

• dæk = the rubber outer part
• hjul = the whole wheel unit, or at least the wheel as a larger object than just the tire

So the sentence suggests:

1. A tire looks bad
2. Then the father also checks the wheel

That makes sense: if the tire seems damaged, you might inspect the whole wheel area too.

This is because Danish uses commas to mark clause boundaries.

In the sentence:

• Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud, ser min far også på hjulet, før vi kører videre.

the commas separate the clauses:

1. Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud
2. ser min far også på hjulet
3. før vi kører videre

So the commas help show where one clause ends and another begins.

For a learner, the most useful point is not just punctuation, but that the commas often make the sentence structure easier to see:

• Hvis-clause
• main clause
• før-clause

Not exactly. Hvis normally means if.

So:

• Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud = If a tire looks bad

If you wanted when in the sense of something expected or repeated, Danish often uses når instead.

Compare:

• Hvis et dæk ser dårligt ud = If a tire looks bad
• Når et dæk ser dårligt ud, ... = When a tire looks bad, ...

In many real contexts, the difference may feel small, but grammatically:

• hvis = if
• når = when

So Hvis is the right word if the sentence is expressing a condition.