Modality Flashcards
kan
[kan OR ken]
can / are able to
må
[moh]
may / must
its paste tense version is of ‘måtte’ {allowed]
kunne
[kew-nuh]
could / were able to
skal
[skell]
must / shall / should
skulle
[sgew-luh]
should / supposed / be supposed to
TRUE OR FALSE: Modal verbs (can, may, shall, will, etc.) are auxiliary, meaning they modify the verb and express whether the action described is seen as a plan, intention, prediction, permission, and so forth.
TRUE
TRUE OR FALSE:
In Danish, the modal verbs leave out the infinitive word ‘at’ when combined with infinitive verbs
TRUE:
‘Kan du høre hende synge?’ meaning ‘can you hear her sing?’
‘Jeg kunne ikke høre hende synge’ meaning ‘I could not hear her sing.’
TRUE OR FALSE:
‘May’ and ‘must’ are often translated into the same word: ‘må.’ Therefore the difference from English is described through the rest of the sentence.
TRUE:
‘Må jeg spørge dig om noget?’ meaning ‘may I ask you about something?’
‘Hun må være meget glad’ meaning ‘she must be very happy.’
TRUE OR FALSE:
The past and conditional of ‘må’ is ‘måtte’:
TRUE:
‘Hun måtte ikke spise mere’ meaning ‘she was not allowed to eat any more.’
TRUE OR FALSE:
The past and conditional of ‘skal’ is ‘skulle.’ This word covers a lot of meanings.
TRUE:
A plan, system, suggestion, or agreement: ‘Du skulle prøve det!’ meaning ‘you should try it!’
Usually with the word nok: A promise or an assurance: ‘Du skal nok blive god’ meaning ‘you will be good (I assure you!)’
The pattern behind a behavior: ‘Hvorfor skal du altid lytte?’ meaning ‘why do you always have to listen?’
A common opinion: ‘H.C. Andersen skulle være god’ meaning ‘Hans Christian Andersen should be good (I heard it from my friends)’
A feared scenario: ‘Jeg er bange at han en dag skal falde’ meaning ‘I fear that he shall one day fall’
TRUE OR FALSE:
‘Skal’ is also used for describing transport or intent:
TRUE:
‘Jeg skal til Danmark (I am going to Denmark)
Jeg skal flyve til England (I will be flying to England)
Du skal hjem nu (you are going home now)
Vi skal ud at løbe (we are going to go running).
da
[dah]
- Really / certainly / after all / is it (modality)
2. since / when
vist
[vissed]
probably / supposedly / I think
burde
[boa{r}d-eh]
ought / should
bør
[bu{rr}]
ought / should
tør
[too-uh OR tou{r}]
dare
its paste tense version is ‘turde’
måtte
[mud-dih]
was/were allowed to (permission)
paste tense of ‘må’ {may]
vil
[vihl]
will / want / wants
nok
[knock]
probably / sufficient / enough
turde
[tou{r}ed]
did dare
paste tense version of ‘tør’
være med
[vay-uh mið]
to join
TRUE OR FALSE:
In Danish you CAN’T combine modal verbs (can, may, shall, will, etc.)
FALSE, you CAN combine modal verbs:
‘Du skal kunne tale dansk’ meaning ‘you must be able to speak Danish,’ where ‘kunne’ becomes ‘be able to.’
TRUE OR FALSE:
The Danish word ‘vil’ can express a want, an intention or demand, or an opinion or prediction.
TRUE
TRUE OR FALSE:
Even though English uses ‘will’ to indicate future aspects, this is not the case for Danish. In Danish, it is only used to describe future actions if you want to underline an intention or opinion.
TRUE:
‘Han kommer senere’ becomes ‘he will come later.’
TRUE OR FALSE:
The past and conditional of ‘vil’ is ‘ville’
TRUE
‘Ville han komme herhen?’ meaning ‘would he come over here?’
jo
[yo]
- yes / certainly / indeed
- why / you see
- used to convey a sense of obviousness (equivalent to ‘as you know’)
