Infinitive Constructions in Danish

In Brief

Danish places expressions such as for at, uden at, ved at, and i stedet for at before an infinitive (the basic verb form): for at hjælpe “in order to help,” uden at spørge “without asking,” ved at øve sig “by practising,” and i stedet for at vente “instead of waiting.” Unlike English, which normally uses an -ing form after without, by, and instead of, Danish keeps at + infinitive.

Overview

At B2, infinitives become useful for much more than short combinations such as prøver at forstå (“tries to understand”). An infinitive phrase can explain why someone acts, how a result is achieved, what does not happen, or which action is chosen over another. These phrases let you connect ideas without building a separate clause with its own subject and tense.

The infinitive is the basic form of a verb, such as hjælpe (“help”), sige (“say”), or forstå (“understand”). In the constructions in this article, it normally appears with the infinitive marker at. The person carrying out the infinitive action is often not stated again: in Jeg kom for at hjælpe, both kom and hjælpe refer to jeg.

For an English-speaking learner, the main challenge is not understanding the meaning but choosing a Danish structure rather than copying the English form. English without saying, by listening, and instead of complaining become uden at sige, ved at lytte, and i stedet for at klage. At the same time, English to does not always become for at: ordinary verb complements generally use at alone.

How It Works

The basic pattern

The linking expression comes first, followed by at and the infinitive:

Meaning	Danish pattern	Example	English equivalent
Purpose	for at + infinitive	for at hjælpe	in order to help / to help
Action not performed	uden at + infinitive	uden at spørge	without asking
Method or means	ved at + infinitive	ved at øve sig	by practising
Alternative	i stedet for at + infinitive	i stedet for at vente	instead of waiting

The infinitive itself does not show person or tense. Compare jeg hjælper (“I help”), where hjælper is a finite verb (a verb marked for tense), with for at hjælpe, where hjælpe is an infinitive. Time is normally understood from the main verb and the context:

• Hun rejste tidligt for at nå toget. — She left early to catch the train.
• Hun rejser tidligt for at nå toget. — She leaves early to catch the train.
• Hun vil rejse tidligt for at nå toget. — She will leave early to catch the train.

For at: purpose

Use for at when the infinitive answers “for what purpose?” or “with what aim?” It is often equivalent to English in order to. English can shorten in order to to a simple to, but Danish still uses for at when purpose is meant:

• Jeg ringede for at bestille et bord. — I called to book a table.
• Vi tog en taxa for at komme frem til tiden. — We took a taxi to arrive on time.

The understood subject is usually the subject of the main clause. In Vi tog en taxa for at komme frem, vi are both the people taking the taxi and the people arriving.

Do not use for at merely because English has to. After verbs such as prøve (“try”), begynde (“begin”), håbe (“hope”), and love (“promise”), use the ordinary at-infinitive:

Function	Danish	English
Purpose	Hun ringede for at spørge.	She called to ask.
Verb complement	Hun prøvede at spørge.	She tried to ask.
Verb complement	Hun lovede at ringe.	She promised to call.

A useful test is to expand English to to in order to. If that keeps the intended meaning, for at is likely. “She called in order to ask” works; “she tried in order to ask” changes the meaning.

Uden at: without doing something

Use uden at + infinitive when the action in the infinitive does not take place:

• Han gik uden at sige farvel. — He left without saying goodbye.
• Hun svarede uden at tøve. — She answered without hesitating.

Again, the subject is normally shared. In the first sentence, han both leaves and does not say goodbye. English uses without + -ing, but Danish does not: uden at sige, not uden siger and not uden sigende in this construction.

An infinitive phrase has no explicit subject of its own. If you need to name a different subject, use a finite clause instead—for example, uden at nogen opdagede det (“without anyone noticing it”). Here opdagede is a past-tense verb, and at functions as a clause-linking conjunction rather than an infinitive marker.

Ved at: method or means

Use ved at + infinitive to explain how something is done or how a result is produced. It often corresponds to English by + -ing:

• Du forbedrer din udtale ved at lytte opmærksomt. — You improve your pronunciation by listening carefully.
• Vi løste problemet ved at genstarte computeren. — We solved the problem by restarting the computer.

This differs from for at. Purpose looks forward to a goal; method describes the action used to reach a result:

• Jeg læser hver dag for at lære nye ord. — My goal is to learn new words.
• Jeg lærer nye ord ved at læse hver dag. — Daily reading is the method.

In some sentences both can occur, but they answer different questions: Hun tog et kursus for at blive bedre ved at øve sig systematisk is grammatically possible, though a more natural sentence would usually separate the ideas.

I stedet for at: choosing an alternative

Use i stedet for at + infinitive when one possible action is replaced by another:

• I stedet for at skrive en mail ringede hun. — Instead of writing an email, she called.
• Vi gik en tur i stedet for at se fjernsyn. — We went for a walk instead of watching television.

The full expression is i stedet for at. English speakers sometimes omit for because English has the compact phrase instead of, but Danish requires for before the infinitive construction.

The phrase can come first to make the rejected option the topic, or later after the chosen action. Front position often creates a clear contrast; final position tends to keep the main action in focus.

Plain at + infinitive after adjectives and verbs

Not every expanded infinitive phrase begins with one of the four linking expressions. The concept also includes infinitives that complete the meaning of an adjective, a verb, or an impersonal expression:

• Det er svært at forstå. — It is difficult to understand.
• Hun er glad for at være her. — She is happy to be here.
• De håber at finde en løsning. — They hope to find a solution.

In Det er svært at forstå, det is a placeholder: the meaningful content comes in at forstå. A noun can also be described as easy or difficult to act on: Bogen er let at læse (“The book is easy to read”). Danish, like English, leaves the object understood—the book is what someone reads.

Negation inside the infinitive phrase

Put ikke before the infinitive when the intended meaning is “in order not to” or “without doing”:

• Jeg hviskede for ikke at vække barnet. — I whispered in order not to wake the child.
• Han gik uden at se sig tilbage. — He left without looking back.

The position of ikke can change the scope (the part of the meaning being denied):

• Jeg ringede for ikke at forstyrre senere. — My purpose was to avoid disturbing you later.
• Jeg ringede ikke for at klage. — Complaining was not my purpose; I called for another reason.

In the second sentence, ikke belongs to the main clause and rejects the purpose for at klage. In the first, it belongs inside the purpose phrase and makes the intended action negative.

Modal and passive infinitives

A modal verb such as kunne (“be able to”), ville (“want to”), or skulle (“be supposed to”) can stand inside the construction. The first at remains, while no second at is added after the modal:

• for at kunne deltage — in order to be able to participate
• uden at ville såre nogen — without wanting to hurt anyone

Passive meaning is commonly formed with blive + past participle (a verb form such as set “seen” or opdaget “discovered”):

• for at blive hørt — in order to be heard
• uden at blive opdaget — without being discovered

Examples in Context

Danish	English	Note
Jeg kom for at hjælpe.	I came (in order) to help.	Purpose; jeg performs both actions.
Hun sparer op for at kunne rejse til Island.	She is saving so that she can travel to Iceland.	Purpose with the modal kunne.
For at undgå køen tog vi af sted tidligt.	To avoid the traffic, we left early.	The purpose phrase comes first.
Han gik uden at sige farvel.	He left without saying goodbye.	An omitted action.
Du kan være uenig uden at blive personlig.	You can disagree without making it personal.	Blive describes entering a state.
Hun fandt vej uden at se på kortet.	She found her way without looking at the map.	The subject is shared.
Vi løste problemet ved at genstarte systemet.	We solved the problem by restarting the system.	Method or means.
Man lærer udtalen ved at lytte til dansk hver dag.	You learn the pronunciation by listening to Danish every day.	General advice; man means people in general.
I stedet for at sende en besked ringede jeg.	Instead of sending a message, I called.	The rejected option comes first.
I stedet for at klage, gør noget.	Instead of complaining, do something.	A direct imperative; the comma marks a rhetorical pause.
Vi lavede mad hjemme i stedet for at spise ude.	We cooked at home instead of eating out.	The alternative follows the main clause.
Det er svært at forstå.	It is difficult to understand.	Plain at-infinitive after an adjective.
Rapporten er nem at læse.	The report is easy to read.	The report is the understood object of læse.
Hun lovede at ringe efter mødet.	She promised to call after the meeting.	A verb complement, not a purpose phrase.
Jeg bad ham om at vente udenfor.	I asked him to wait outside.	Ham is understood as the person waiting.

Common Mistakes

Copying the English -ing form

• Wrong: Han gik uden siger farvel.
• Right: Han gik uden at sige farvel.
• Why: After uden, Danish uses at + infinitive, not a present-tense verb or a direct copy of English -ing.

Using for at for every English “to”

• Wrong: Jeg prøver for at forstå teksten.
• Right: Jeg prøver at forstå teksten.
• Why: Prøve takes an ordinary at-infinitive. Use for at only for purpose: Jeg læser langsomt for at forstå teksten.

Confusing purpose and method

• Wrong: Jeg lærte ordene for at gentage dem mange gange when the intended meaning is “by repeating them.”
• Right: Jeg lærte ordene ved at gentage dem mange gange.
• Why: For at names a goal; ved at names the means used to obtain a result.

Giving the infinitive phrase an overt subject

• Wrong: Jeg åbnede døren for at han komme ind.
• Right: Jeg åbnede døren, så han kunne komme ind.
• Why: Han komme is neither a normal infinitive phrase nor a finite clause. When the second action has a separately named subject, use a clause with a finite verb such as kunne.

Misplacing the negative

• Wrong: Jeg talte stille for at ikke vække barnet.
• Right: Jeg talte stille for ikke at vække barnet.
• Why: In a negative purpose phrase, the standard order is for + ikke + at + infinitive.

Omitting for in the alternative construction

• Wrong: I stedet at vente tog vi bussen.
• Right: I stedet for at vente tog vi bussen.
• Why: The complete expression is i stedet for at.

Usage Notes

In conversation, Danish speakers often use a finite clause with så (“so/so that”) where a compact purpose infinitive is also possible. Jeg skriver det ned, så jeg ikke glemmer det explicitly repeats the subject and can sound more conversational than Jeg skriver det ned for ikke at glemme det. Both are natural, but the finite clause makes the relationship and tense easier to spell out.

A short purpose phrase normally shares its subject with the main clause. In formal writing, check that the intended subject is unmistakable. A sentence such as For at forbedre servicen blev systemet ændret is understandable, but it does not name who wanted to improve the service. If the responsible person or organisation matters, name it: Virksomheden ændrede systemet for at forbedre servicen.

Do not add English-style introductory commas automatically. Danish often writes a short fronted infinitive phrase directly before the main clause: For at spare tid tog vi en taxa. A comma may mark a deliberate rhetorical pause in a short command, as in the supplied example I stedet for at klage, gør noget, but neutral prose generally does not need one merely because the phrase comes first.

The marker at is retained in these linking constructions even when a modal follows: for at kunne, uden at ville. By contrast, modals in a simple verb phrase take a bare infinitive (an infinitive without at): Jeg kan komme, not jeg kan at komme. This distinction is especially noticeable in Jeg arbejder for at kunne rejse—the first at belongs to the purpose construction, while rejse follows kunne without another marker.

Beyond the Basics

Er ved at does not mean “by doing”

The same words ved at occur in the fixed expression være ved at + infinitive, meaning “to be in the process of” or “to be about to”:

• Jeg er ved at lave mad. — I am cooking / I am in the middle of making food.
• Glasset er ved at falde ned. — The glass is about to fall.

This is not a method phrase. Compare Jeg lærer ved at lave fejl (“I learn by making mistakes”), where ved at lave fejl explains how learning happens.

Earlier actions: the perfect infinitive

To show that the infinitive action happened earlier, Danish can use at have + past participle or, with verbs that form the perfect with være, at være + past participle:

• Hun gik uden at have betalt. — She left without having paid.
• Han beklagede at være kommet for sent. — He regretted having arrived late.

This perfect infinitive (an infinitive that looks back to an earlier completed action) is useful in precise or formal language. In everyday speech, Danish may instead use a finite clause if the time relationship needs to be especially clear.

Explicit controllers

The unstated subject of an infinitive is sometimes determined by an object rather than by the main subject. In Jeg bad ham om at vente, ham is the person who waits. Verbs such as bede nogen om at (“ask someone to”), opfordre nogen til at (“encourage someone to”), and tillade nogen at (“allow someone to”) establish this relationship. When reading a long sentence, ask which person logically carries out the infinitive action rather than assuming it is always the grammatical subject.

Purpose objects with til at

Danish often uses til at after a noun when describing what an object is for or what something is suitable for:

• en kniv til at skære brød med — a knife for cutting bread
• en stol til at sidde på — a chair to sit on

This is different from for at, which normally gives a person’s or agent’s purpose in performing an action. Compare Jeg købte en kniv for at skære brød (“I bought a knife in order to cut bread”) with Det er en kniv til at skære brød med (“It is a knife for cutting bread”). Notice that Danish often keeps the relevant preposition at the end: med and på.

Practice Tips

1. Build four versions around one situation. Start with an action such as Jeg tager bussen and add a goal (for at komme på arbejde), something avoided (uden at blive våd), a method (ved at bruge rejsekort), and an alternative (i stedet for at cykle). This trains meaning, not just memorised phrases.
2. Translate English gerund links deliberately. Collect sentences containing without -ing, by -ing, and instead of -ing. Rewrite them with uden at, ved at, and i stedet for at, then check that the same person logically performs both actions.
3. Listen for the full chunks. In Danish audio, treat for at kunne, uden at have, and i stedet for at as units. Pause after hearing one and predict the infinitive that could follow.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Infinitive with At — reviews the basic infinitive marker, ordinary verb complements, and omission of at after modal verbs.