Hun smører salve på anklen om aftenen, og forbindingen bliver skiftet hver morgen.

In Danish, the present tense is very simple:

• infinitive: at smøre = to apply / to spread
• present tense: smører = apply/applies

Danish verbs do not change according to the subject the way English does. So:

• jeg smører = I apply
• du smører = you apply
• hun smører = she applies
• vi smører = we apply

So smører stays the same for all persons.

at smøre often means to spread, to smear, or to apply, depending on context. In this sentence, it means to apply ointment.

salve means ointment / salve.

There is no article before salve because Danish often leaves out the article when talking about a substance or material in a general way, especially after verbs like smøre.

So:

• Hun smører salve på anklen = She applies ointment to the ankle.

If you said en salve, that would sound more like a salve / an ointment as a countable item, not just the substance being used.

This is very common in Danish, especially with body parts.

Danish often uses the definite form of the body part instead of a possessive like her or his, when it is already obvious whose body part is meant.

So:

• på anklen = on the ankle
• på hendes ankel = on her ankle

Both are possible, but på anklen is often more natural when the owner is already clear from hun.

This is similar to how some European languages say things like she washed the hands instead of her hands.

anklen is the definite singular form of en ankel.

The pattern is:

• indefinite singular: en ankel = an ankle
• definite singular: anklen = the ankle

For many en-words, the definite ending is -en.
Because the noun already ends in -el, the spelling changes a little in the definite form:

• ankel → anklen

This kind of form is normal in Danish.

om aftenen means in the evening or in the evenings, depending on context.

The expression om + time noun in the definite form is very common for parts of the day:

• om morgenen = in the morning
• om aftenen = in the evening
• om natten = at night / during the night

So even though English often says in the evening, Danish uses om aftenen.

In this sentence, it suggests a habitual action: she does this in the evening.

Both expressions relate to morning, but they do different things:

• hver morgen = every morning
• om morgenen = in the morning / in the mornings

So:

• forbindingen bliver skiftet hver morgen means the bandage is changed every morning
• forbindingen bliver skiftet om morgenen would mean it is changed in the morning

The sentence uses hver morgen because it emphasizes regular repetition.

This is a passive construction.

• forbindingen = the bandage / the dressing
• bliver = becomes / is
• skiftet = changed

So literally, it is something like:

• the bandage becomes changed

But in natural English, that is:

• the bandage is changed

This is a very common way to form the passive in Danish:

• bliver + past participle

Examples:

• Døren bliver åbnet. = The door is opened.
• Maden bliver lavet. = The food is made.

Yes, absolutely.

Both can express a passive meaning:

• forbindingen bliver skiftet
• forbindingen skiftes

The difference is mostly style and nuance:

• bliver skiftet often sounds a bit more like an actual event or process
• skiftes can sound slightly more formal, general, or matter-of-fact

In everyday language, bliver + participle is extremely common and often easier for learners to recognize.

skiftet is the past participle of at skifte = to change.

Main forms:

• infinitive: at skifte
• present: skifter
• past: skiftede
• past participle: skiftet

In the sentence, skiftet is used with bliver to make the passive:

• bliver skiftet = is changed

Because after og, Danish usually keeps normal main clause word order if no other element is moved to the front.

So:

• Hun smører salve på anklen om aftenen
• og forbindingen bliver skiftet hver morgen

Both clauses are standard main clauses with the verb in second position.

You would only get a different order if something else were placed first, for example:

• Om morgenen bliver forbindingen skiftet.

Here om morgenen comes first, so the verb bliver must come before the subject forbindingen.

Often yes, but not always exactly.

forbinding can mean:

• bandage
• dressing
• sometimes medical wrapping/bandaging

In a medical context, forbinding is often closer to dressing if it refers to something covering a wound. In many learner translations, bandage is used because it is simple and easy to understand.

So the exact English word depends on context, but bandage is a reasonable match.

It most naturally describes a routine or repeated action.

The clues are:

• om aftenen = in the evening
• hver morgen = every morning
• present tense: smører, bliver skiftet

So the sentence sounds like something that happens regularly, for example as part of treatment or care.

A few pronunciation notes that often help learners:

• hun: the u is not like English oo; it is a short Danish vowel
• smører: the ø sound is important; it is not like English o
• salve: two syllables, roughly SAL-və
• anklen: the middle syllable is weak; roughly ANG-klən
• bliver: in everyday speech, this is often reduced and may sound closer to bli'r
• skiftet: the t at the end may be quite soft in connected speech

If pronunciation is a big concern, a dictionary with audio is especially useful for words like smører and bliver.