Jeg ser efter, om refleksen sidder fast, før jeg cykler i mørket.

I

Breakdown of Jeg ser efter, om refleksen sidder fast, før jeg cykler i mørket.

• i: in
• før: before
• mørket: the dark

Questions & Answers about Jeg ser efter, om refleksen sidder fast, før jeg cykler i mørket.

Why is it ser efter and not just ser?

Because at se efter is a fixed expression meaning to check, to look and see whether something is okay, or to make sure.

On its own, ser usually just means see or look.
So:

• Jeg ser. = I see / I am looking
• Jeg ser efter ... = I check / I look to see ...

In this sentence, Jeg ser efter, om ... means something like I check whether ...

What does om mean here?

Here, om means whether / if.

It introduces an indirect yes-no question:

• Jeg ser efter, om refleksen sidder fast.
• I check whether the reflector is attached securely.

This is different from other meanings of om, such as:

• about: en bog om Danmark
• in / after (time): om en time
• around: gå om hjørnet

So in this sentence, om specifically means whether.

Why is there a comma before om?

In Danish, commas are commonly used before subordinate clauses, and om refleksen sidder fast is a subordinate clause.

So the structure is:

• main clause: Jeg ser efter
• subordinate clause: om refleksen sidder fast

Danish uses commas more regularly in places where English sometimes does not. So even if the English translation might not always include a comma, Danish often does.