Types of Subordinate Clauses in Danish

In Brief

Danish subordinate clauses fall into three useful groups: nominal clauses fill a noun-like role, adverbial clauses express circumstances such as cause or time, and relative clauses describe a noun. Most finite subordinate clauses use the order subject + sentence adverb + finite verb: fordi jeg ikke kommer (“because I am not coming”), unlike the main-clause order jeg kommer ikke.

Overview

A subordinate clause (ledsætning in Danish) contains a subject and a finite verb—a verb marked for tense—but does not function as an independent sentence in its context. It is attached to another clause or placed inside it. In Jeg ved, at hun arbejder, the words at hun arbejder tell us what I know. In Jeg bliver hjemme, fordi jeg er syg, the clause beginning with fordi gives the reason.

At B2, it is useful to move beyond memorizing individual conjunctions and ask what job the whole clause performs. A nominal clause acts roughly like a noun phrase: it may be what someone knows, hopes, or asks. An adverbial clause adds information about time, cause, condition, contrast, or purpose. A relative clause identifies or describes a noun. This classification helps you choose a connector and understand punctuation, omission, and word order.

English and Danish have many corresponding connectors, but their syntax differs in an important way. English keeps not after an auxiliary in both “she is not coming” and “because she is not coming.” Danish normally puts ikke after the finite verb in a main clause but before it in a subordinate clause: hun kommer ikke versus fordi hun ikke kommer. This is one of the most reliable ways to recognize Danish subordinate structure.

How It Works

The shared word-order pattern

A finite verb is the verb that carries tense, such as kommer, kom or har. A sentence adverb comments on the whole statement; common examples are ikke (“not”), aldrig (“never”), ofte (“often”), måske (“perhaps”), and heldigvis (“fortunately”). In a neutral subordinate clause, these adverbs normally stand before the finite verb.

Clause type	Basic pattern	Danish example	English meaning
Main clause	first element + finite verb + subject + adverb	I dag kommer hun ikke.	Today she is not coming.
Subordinate clause	connector + subject + adverb + finite verb	fordi hun ikke kommer i dag	because she is not coming today

The first element of a main clause can be the subject: Hun kommer ikke i dag. If another element comes first, Danish uses V2 word order, meaning that the finite verb remains in second position: I dag kommer hun ikke. A subordinate clause does not normally use this inversion: fordi hun ikke kommer i dag, not fordi kommer hun ikke i dag.

When a subordinate clause comes first, the following main clause still follows V2 order. The entire initial subordinate clause counts as the first element:

• Selvom han er ung, er han klog. — “Although he is young, he is wise.”
• Når mødet er slut, ringer jeg til dig. — “When the meeting is over, I’ll call you.”

1. Nominal clauses: a fact, thought, or question as a unit

A nominal clause fills a position that could often be occupied by a noun phrase. A subject is who or what the sentence is about; an object is the person or thing affected by the action or completing the verb’s meaning. Compare Jeg kender svaret (“I know the answer”) with Jeg ved, at hun kommer (“I know that she is coming”). The whole at-clause completes ved.

Form	Typical function	Example
at + clause	statement, fact, belief, wish	Hun siger, at hun er træt.
om + clause	indirect yes/no question; uncertainty	Jeg ved ikke, om hun kommer.
question word + clause	indirect information question	Kan du forklare, hvorfor hun gik?

An at-clause can also serve as the logical subject:

• At han sagde nej, overraskede mig. — “That he said no surprised me.”
• Det overraskede mig, at han sagde nej. — “It surprised me that he said no.”

The second version uses anticipatory det: det occupies the subject position, while the heavier clause comes later. This is often more natural in everyday Danish.

Indirect questions

An indirect question reports or embeds a question rather than asking it directly. It does not use main-question inversion:

• Direct: Hvor bor hun? — “Where does she live?”
• Indirect: Jeg ved ikke, hvor hun bor. — “I don’t know where she lives.”

Use om for a yes/no question: Kommer han? becomes Jeg ved ikke, om han kommer. Use a question word for an information question: hvem, hvad, hvor, hvornår, hvordan, or hvorfor.

When the question word itself represents the subject, Danish commonly uses der in the embedded clause: Jeg ved ikke, hvem der kommer (“I don’t know who is coming”) and Jeg undrer mig over, hvad der sker (“I wonder what is happening”). When the question word is the object, there is already a separate subject and no such der: Jeg ved ikke, hvem hun inviterede (“I don’t know whom she invited”).

2. Adverbial clauses: time, cause, condition, and contrast

An adverbial clause modifies the situation described by the main clause. It answers a question such as when, why, under what condition, or despite what fact.

Meaning	Common connectors	Example
time	når, da, mens, før, efter at, indtil	Hun sang, mens hun gik.
cause	fordi, da, eftersom	Vi gik hjem, fordi vi var trætte.
condition	hvis, medmindre	Jeg kommer, hvis jeg får tid.
concession/contrast	selvom, skønt	Selvom det regnede, gik vi ud.
purpose	for at + infinitive; for at + finite clause in relevant contexts	Hun talte langsomt, for at alle kunne forstå hende.
result/comparison	så … at, som om	Han talte så lavt, at ingen hørte ham.

Be especially careful with Danish når and da. For a repeated event or a present/future situation, use når: Når jeg har fri, læser jeg (“When I have time off, I read”) and Når hun kommer, spiser vi (“When she comes, we’ll eat”). For one completed event in the past, use da: Da hun kom, spiste vi (“When she arrived, we ate”).

The choice between fordi and for also affects structure. Fordi introduces a subordinate clause: Jeg går, fordi jeg er træt. The coordinating conjunction for links two main clauses: Jeg går, for jeg er træt. With ikke, the difference becomes visible: fordi jeg ikke har tid but for jeg har ikke tid.

3. Relative clauses: describing a noun

A relative clause gives more information about an antecedent—the noun or noun phrase it refers back to. In kvinden, der bor her, kvinden is the antecedent and der bor her identifies or describes her.

Relative form	Use	Example
der	subject of the relative clause	Manden, der venter, er min lærer.
som	subject or object	Manden, som venter … / bogen, som jeg købte …
zero form	object only	Bogen, jeg købte, var dyr.
hvis	possession (“whose”)	Kvinden, hvis søn jeg kender …
hvor	place or context	Byen, hvor jeg voksede op …

Der cannot normally be the object of the relative clause. In bogen, som jeg læste, the subject is jeg and the missing object is “the book,” so use som or omit it: bogen, jeg læste. By contrast, the relative marker cannot be omitted when it is the subject: manden, der/som bor her, not manden, bor her.

Relative clauses also use subordinate word order: en kollega, som jeg aldrig har mødt (“a colleague whom I have never met”), with aldrig before the finite auxiliary har.

Examples in Context

Danish	English	Note
Det er vigtigt, at du forstår.	It is important that you understand.	Nominal at-clause after anticipatory det
Jeg tror, at hun ikke har set beskeden.	I think that she has not seen the message.	ikke precedes finite har
Vi ved endnu ikke, om toget er forsinket.	We do not yet know whether the train is delayed.	Indirect yes/no question with om
Kan du huske, hvor vi parkerede bilen?	Can you remember where we parked the car?	Indirect information question; no inversion
Jeg undrer mig over, hvad der sker.	I wonder what is happening.	Question word functioning as subject, with der
Hun sang, mens hun gik.	She sang while she walked.	Simultaneous actions
Når du er færdig, kan vi gå.	When you are finished, we can leave.	Initial clause triggers V2 in the main clause
Da telefonen ringede, sov jeg.	When the phone rang, I was asleep.	One specific past event
Vi bliver hjemme, fordi børnene ikke har det godt.	We are staying home because the children are not feeling well.	Cause; subordinate placement of ikke
Hvis du ikke kan komme, skal du ringe.	If you cannot come, you must call.	Condition followed by main-clause inversion
Selvom han er ung, er han klog.	Although he is young, he is wise.	Concession and V2 in the following main clause
Det er den bog, som jeg fortalte dig om.	That is the book I told you about.	Object relative; som may be omitted
Kvinden, hvis cykel blev stjålet, ringede til politiet.	The woman whose bicycle was stolen called the police.	Possessive relative with hvis
Vi fandt en café, hvor der stadig var åbent.	We found a café that was still open.	Relative hvor referring to a place

Common Mistakes

Keeping main-clause word order after a subordinator

• Wrong: Jeg bliver hjemme, fordi jeg har ikke tid.
• Right: Jeg bliver hjemme, fordi jeg ikke har tid.
• Why: In neutral standard Danish, ikke comes before the finite verb har in the subordinate clause.

Forgetting V2 after an initial subordinate clause

• Wrong: Når mødet slutter, vi går hjem.
• Right: Når mødet slutter, går vi hjem.
• Why: The initial når-clause occupies the first position. The finite verb går must therefore come before the subject vi in the main clause.

Using question inversion inside an indirect question

• Wrong: Jeg ved ikke, hvor bor hun.
• Right: Jeg ved ikke, hvor hun bor.
• Why: Hvor hun bor is an embedded question and follows subordinate-clause order, not direct-question order.

Confusing om with hvis

• Wrong: Jeg ved ikke, hvis han kommer.
• Right: Jeg ved ikke, om han kommer.
• Why: Here the meaning is “whether,” so use om. Use hvis for a condition: Hvis han kommer, starter vi (“If he comes, we’ll start”). English “if” can cover both meanings, but Danish normally distinguishes them.

Using der as a relative object

• Wrong: Det er filmen, der jeg så i går.
• Right: Det er filmen, som jeg så i går. / Det er filmen, jeg så i går.
• Why: The film is the object of så, while jeg is the subject. Relative der is used for a subject, not an object.

Omitting a subject relative marker

• Wrong: Manden, bor ved siden af, er læge.
• Right: Manden, der bor ved siden af, er læge.
• Why: When the relative marker is the subject of bor, it cannot be left out.

Usage Notes

In speech, at is often omitted after common verbs of thought and speech when the meaning remains clear: Jeg tror, hun kommer senere and Han siger, han er træt. Keeping at is always useful when it makes a long sentence easier to parse, and formal prose may favor the explicit connector. Do not confuse this optional complementizer at with infinitive at in at læse (“to read”).

Danish has two accepted comma systems. Under the traditional system, a comma is placed before and after subordinate clauses; under the newer system, the opening comma before a subordinate clause is often omitted, while a closing comma is still used where required. This is why you may see both Jeg tror, at han kommer and Jeg tror at han kommer. Follow the style required by your school, workplace, or publisher, and apply it consistently. A comma does not change a main clause into a subordinate clause: connector, function, and word order are the better clues.

Some connectors differ in register. Fordi is the everyday causal connector. Eftersom and causal da are common in more formal or written explanation. Skønt can sound more literary or formal than selvom. In ordinary conversation, selvom is usually the safest choice for “although/even though.”

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Word order can carry a discourse meaning

You may hear main-clause-like order after fordi, especially in spontaneous speech: Jeg går hjem, fordi jeg har ikke mere at lave. This order is often used when the reason is presented as a separate assertion or afterthought rather than as tightly integrated background information. It is a real feature of modern spoken Danish, but learners should first master the neutral standard pattern fordi jeg ikke har mere at lave. That pattern works in both careful speech and writing.

Restrictive and supplementary relatives

A restrictive relative clause identifies which person or thing is meant: De studerende, der bestod prøven, fik et certifikat can mean the students who passed received a certificate. A supplementary relative adds parenthetical information about an already identified referent: Sara, som bor i Aarhus, kommer i morgen. Intonation and context help express the distinction, and punctuation conventions mark supplementary information more clearly in writing.

Danish can also use a clause after broader antecedents such as an entire statement: Han aflyste mødet, hvilket overraskede alle (“He cancelled the meeting, which surprised everyone”). Here hvilket refers not to mødet alone but to the whole preceding event. This is especially useful in formal written Danish.

Clauses inside clauses

At B2 and above, subordinate clauses frequently nest inside one another:

• Jeg tror, at den bog, som du anbefalede, er udsolgt. — “I think that the book you recommended is sold out.”
• Hun spurgte, om vi kunne vente, indtil mødet var slut. — “She asked whether we could wait until the meeting was over.”

Find the connectors first, then identify the subject and finite verb of each clause. Each subordinate clause keeps its own internal order. This prevents long sentences from becoming a single confusing chain.

Practice Tips

1. Use the ikke test. Take a main clause such as han kommer ikke and place it after several connectors: fordi han ikke kommer, selvom han ikke kommer, at han ikke kommer. Saying both versions aloud makes the order contrast automatic.
2. Classify by function, not just connector. For each sentence you read, ask whether the clause acts as a thing or idea, gives a circumstance, or describes a noun. Label it nominal, adverbial, or relative before translating it.
3. Transform direct questions. Change Hvor arbejder hun? into Jeg ved ikke, hvor hun arbejder and Hvem kommer? into Jeg ved ikke, hvem der kommer. This targets two common problem areas at once: inversion and subject der.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Relative Clauses — reviews som, der, omission, hvis, and hvor before they are compared with other clause types.