Lesson A1-004 - Asking someone to repeat | Learn Danish in English

Danish lesson set in a contemporary Copenhagen everyday setting: Asking someone to repeat their introduction politely — without being rude.

EN → DA / Level: A1 ○ In progress

Drill Audio

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Dialogue

A

Undskyld, kan du gentage det?

OON-skyll, kahn doo gen-TAH-yeh deh? Sorry, could you repeat that?
B

Ja. Jeg er her for at studere.

yah. yai air hair for aht stoo-DEH-ruh. Sure. I'm here to study.
A

Kan du sige det igen?

kahn doo SEE-yeh deh ee-YEN? Could you say that again?
B

Jeg studerer her.

yai stoo-DEH-uh hair. I study here.
A

Tak. Jeg forstår nu.

tahk. yai for-STOR noo. Thanks. I understand now.
B

Det var så lidt.

deh vahr soh lit. No problem.

Word by Word

Undskyld A polite apology or attention-getter meaning “sorry.” It softens the request and shows respect.
kan The present tense of “can,” used here to make a polite request. In Danish, questions like this are often a soft way to ask someone to do something.
du The pronoun “you,” used for informal singular address. It is the subject of the request.
gentage A verb meaning “to repeat.” Here it asks someone to say something again.
det A pronoun meaning “that” or “it.” It refers to the thing that needs repeating.
Ja A simple word meaning “yes.” It answers a question or shows agreement.
Jeg The pronoun “I.” It is the subject of the sentence.
er The present tense of “to be.” It links the subject to the rest of the sentence.
her An adverb meaning “here.” It indicates location.
for A preposition used in the pattern “for at” to express purpose, like “in order to.”
at A small particle that comes before an infinitive verb in Danish. It functions like “to” in “to study.”
studere An infinitive verb meaning “to study.” It names the action without changing for person.
sige A verb meaning “to say” or “to tell.” Here it asks someone to speak the words again.
igen An adverb meaning “again.” It shows the action should be repeated.
studerer A verb meaning “study” in the present tense. It shows an ongoing or general action.
Tak A common word meaning “thanks.” It expresses gratitude.
forstår The present tense of “understand.” It shows that the speaker now understands.
nu An adverb meaning “now.” It indicates the change has happened at this moment.
var The past tense of “to be.” It is part of the set phrase used to say “you’re welcome” or “no problem.”
så An adverb meaning “so” or “that.” In this expression it contributes to the idiomatic meaning rather than being translated literally.
lidt An adjective/adverb meaning “little” or “a little.” In the phrase, the whole expression means “It was nothing” or “No problem.”

Grammar Points

kan du + infinitiv?

Kan du sige det igen?

kahn doo SEE-yeh deh ee-YEN?

Can you say that again?

Brug kan du + verbum til en høflig forespørgsel. På dansk kommer verbet i infinitiv efter kan du.

for at + infinitiv

Jeg er her for at studere.

yai air hair for aht stoo-DEH-ruh.

I'm here to study.

for at + verbum viser formål: hvorfor man er et sted eller gør noget.

Danish Vocabulary

Ja. intj
yah. Sure.

A short, affirmative response.

Jeg er her for at studere. phrase
yai air hair for aht stoo-DEH-ruh. I'm here to study.

Explains the reason for being here.

Jeg forstår nu. phrase
yai for-STOR noo. I understand now.

Shows that the speaker has understood.

kan du gentage det? phrase
kahn doo gen-TAH-yeh deh? Could you repeat that?

Polite question asking someone to say something again.

Tak. intj
tahk. Thanks.

Polite expression of gratitude.

Undskyld intj
OON-skyll Sorry

Used politely to get attention or apologize before asking someone to repeat.

Alternative Expressions

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Undskyld (Sorry / Excuse me)

  • Beklager beh-KLAY-uh (Sorry)
  • Undskyld mig OON-skyll my (Excuse me)

kan du sige det igen? (Could you say that again?)

  • Kan du gentage det? kahn doo gen-TAH-yeh deh? (Could you repeat that?)
  • Kan du sige det en gang til? kahn doo SEE-yeh deh en gahng teel? (Could you say it once more?)

Ja. (Sure.)

  • Selvfølgelig sel-FUH-lee (Of course / Sure)
  • Ja, selvfølgelig yah, sel-FUH-lee (Yes, of course)

Det var så lidt. (No problem.)

  • Velbekomme VEL-beh-KUM-uh (You’re welcome)
  • Intet problem IN-teht proh-BLEM (No problem)

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Sorry, could you repeat that?

Show AnswerUndskyld, kan du gentage det?

Could you say that again?

Show AnswerKan du sige det igen?

I study here.

Show AnswerJeg studerer her.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

Sorry

Show AnswerUndskyld

Sure.

Show AnswerJa

Thanks.

Show AnswerTak