Modalverben

Danish modals behave much like English "can", "must" and "should": they take a plain infinitive with no at, and they do not change for the person. Their meanings, though, do not line up one to one with English, and two of them are false friends.

The five core modals

Like English modals, the present has no -r: kan, skal, vil, not *kanr. The infinitive follows straight after, without at: Jeg kan tale dansk.

Må ikke and behøver ikke

• må ikke = must not, are not allowed to: Du må ikke ryge her. (You mustn't smoke here.)
• må gerne = may, are welcome to: Du må gerne ryge udenfor.
• behøver ikke = don't have to: Du behøver ikke at komme. (You don't have to come.)
• skal ikke = are not going to, or (as advice) shouldn't: Jeg skal ikke arbejde i morgen. (I'm not working tomorrow.)

Vil is "want" first

Jeg vil gå means "I want to go". For an English "I'll go", Danish usually uses the present (Jeg går nu) or skal for a plan (Jeg skal til tandlægen i morgen). Vil as a plain future appears mainly in writing and predictions: Det vil tage tid.

Polite requests

• Jeg vil gerne have en kop kaffe og et wienerbrød. - I'd like a coffee and a Danish pastry.
• Kunne du hjælpe mig? - Could you help me?
• Kan du godt lide lakrids? - Do you like liquorice? (kunne lide = like)

Modal without a main verb

With a direction, Danish can leave out the verb of movement: Jeg skal hjem. (I have to go home.) Vi vil i biografen. (We want to go to the cinema.)

For English speakers

Two things transfer well: no person endings, and no at after the modal (as in English "can swim"). The trouble starts where English has "to": "want to", "have to", "ought to". Typical mistakes:

• *Jeg vil at gå. → Jeg vil gå.
• *Jeg kan at svømme. → Jeg kan svømme.
• Reading Du må ikke parkere her as "you don't have to park here": it means "you mustn't park here".
• Jeg vil ringe til dig for "I'll call you" sounds like "I want to call you"; say Jeg ringer til dig.