Greetings and politeness in Danish
Hello, please, thank you, sorry: the ten openers everything else builds on. Play the ten Danish words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 11 Danish phrases in this lesson
- Hejhai
- Hello
- God morgengoh MORN
- Good morning
- God aftengoh AHF-ten
- Good evening
- Farvelfah-VEL
- Goodbye
- Vi sesvee SEHS
- See you
- Vær så venligvair saw VEN-lee
- Please
- Taktahk
- Thank you
- Selv taksel TAHK
- You're welcome
- UndskyldOON-skool
- Sorry
- Undskyld migOON-skool mai
- Excuse me
- Hyggeligt at møde digHOO-geh-leet at MUR-theh dai
- Nice to meet you
The greeting. To the doctor, the mayor, a toddler: hej works for all of them. Doubled as "hej hej" it means goodbye instead, which is the entire Danish formality system in one word.
Danes swallow half the letters: it comes out like "go morn". Used until around 10, after which everyone is back to hej.
Said on arrival in the evening, mostly in shops and on the phone. Among friends hej covers it, and as a parting it becomes "ha' en god aften", have a good evening.
The proper goodbye, slightly formal. In practice everyone says "hej hej" or "vi ses" (vee SES), see you. Farvel is for leaving forever or leaving the doctor.
Literally "we'll be seen", what friends say on parting. Farvel is the polite goodbye.
Danish famously has no everyday word for please. This formal phrase exists but real politeness lives in tone and in tacking tak onto requests: "en kaffe, tak" is the natural way to say a coffee, please.
The workhorse. Also learn "tak for i dag" (thanks for today) when leaving people, and "tak for sidst" (thanks for last time) when you see them again. Danes really do say these.
Literally "self thanks", meaning thank YOU. The other common reply is "det var så lidt" (deh vah saw LIT), it was so little.
The apology, and the one word Danes use for sorry, excuse me and pardon alike. "Det må du undskylde" (day maw doo OON-skool-eh) is the fuller, more formal version.
Adding mig (me) turns the apology into a call for attention. To squeeze past on the metro, "må jeg lige komme forbi?" (maw yai LEE KOM-eh for-BEE), may I just get past, is what people say.
Literally "cozy to meet you", and the national word hyggelig doing its job. The handshake that goes with it is short and firm.