Taking a Break from Studying | Learn Danish in English

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Use Taking a Break from Studying to practice Danish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Jeg har studeret i lang tid.

yai hah stoo-THAY-uhd ee lahng TEETH. I've been studying for a long time.

Læg dit arbejde til side.

LEH deeth AH-bye-thuh teel SEE-thuh. Put your work aside.

Hvil dig et øjeblik.

VEE-l deye uh UR-yuh-BLEEK. Rest for a moment.

Det er svært at koncentrere sig nu.

deh air SVAIR-d ahd kon-sen-TRAY-ruh say noo. It's hard to concentrate now.

Det betyder som regel, at din hjerne har brug for en pause.

deh buh-TEE-thuh som RAY-gul ahd deen YAIR-nuh hah broo for uh POW-suh. That usually means your brain needs a break.

Skal jeg øve mit ordforråd senere?

skel yai UR-vuh meet OR-faw-ROH SAY-nuh-ruh? Should I review vocabulary later?

Start med de lettere ord, når du kommer tilbage.

STAH-d meh dee LED-uh-ruh ohd vawn doo KOH-muh teh-BEH-luh. Start with the easier words when you come back.

Jeg lukker notesbogen, mens jeg hviler mig.

yai LOOK-uh NOHTS-boh-un mens yai VEE-luh may. I'll close the notebook while I rest.

Så kan vi fortsætte mere roligt.

soh kan vee for-SET-uh MAY-ruh ROH-lee. Then we can continue more calmly.

Word by Word

Jeg “Jeg” means “I” here and identifies the speaker as the person who has studied. It is used as the subject before the verb, as in “Jeg har studeret i lang tid.”

har “har” means “have” here and combines with “studeret” to describe studying connected with the present. A common reuse is “har” followed by a completed-action form when talking about something that has happened.

studeret “studeret” means “studied” here and describes the activity that has taken place. It follows “har” in “Jeg har studeret i lang tid,” so the phrase refers to studying over a period of time.

i “i” means “for” in the time expression “i lang tid.” It is used before a period of time to show how long something has continued.

lang “lang” means “long” here and describes the length of the period in “lang tid.” It is placed before the time word it describes.

tid “tid” means “time” here, specifically the period during which the studying has continued. Together with “i lang tid,” it gives a duration.

Læg “Læg” tells the other person to put or lay something somewhere. In “Læg dit arbejde til side,” it is a direct instruction, and “Læg ... til side” is a reusable pattern for telling someone to put an item aside.

dit “dit” means “your” and identifies the work as belonging to the person being addressed. It is placed directly before “arbejde” in “dit arbejde.”

arbejde “arbejde” means “work” here, referring to the study work that should be put aside. It is the object of the instruction “Læg dit arbejde til side.”

til “til” is part of the direction expression “til side,” which together means “aside” in this sentence. The reusable pattern is “Læg” followed by an object and then “til side.”

side “side” means “side,” but in “til side” the complete expression means “aside.” It appears after “til” in the instruction “Læg dit arbejde til side.”

Hvil “Hvil” means “rest” here and gives the person being addressed a direct instruction. It is used with “dig” in “Hvil dig et øjeblik” to tell someone to rest for a short time.

dig “dig” refers to the person being addressed in “Hvil dig et øjeblik.” Together with “Hvil,” it makes the instruction reflexive: the person should rest themself.

et “et” means “a” in “et øjeblik” and introduces one indefinite moment. This phrase is useful when asking someone to wait or rest for a short time.

øjeblik “øjeblik” means “moment” here. In the expression “et øjeblik,” it specifies the short period for which the person should rest.

Det “Det” refers to the situation being discussed: the difficulty concentrating or what that difficulty indicates. It begins both “Det er svært at koncentrere sig nu” and “Det betyder som regel...”.

er “er” means “is” and links the situation to the description “svært.” In “Det er svært at koncentrere sig nu,” it states that concentrating is difficult.

svært “svært” means “difficult” here and describes concentrating as hard at this moment. A useful pattern is “Det er svært at” followed by the activity that is difficult.

at “at” introduces the activity in “at koncentrere sig.” In the pattern “Det er svært at ...,” it connects the description of difficulty with an action.

koncentrere “koncentrere” means “concentrate” here as part of “at koncentrere sig.” The complete reflexive expression describes focusing, and it can follow “svært at” when explaining that focusing is difficult.

sig “sig” is the reflexive part of “koncentrere sig,” directing the action back to the person who is concentrating. It is required in this expression when someone describes concentrating themself.

nu “nu” means “now” and limits the difficulty to the present moment. It is placed at the end of “Det er svært at koncentrere sig nu.”

betyder “betyder” means “means” here and introduces what the difficulty indicates. A common reuse is “Det betyder, at ...” before the situation or result being explained.

som “som” is part of “som regel,” which means “usually” in this sentence. It helps introduce a general tendency rather than a statement about every situation.

regel “regel” means “rule” on its own, but in “som regel” the complete expression means “usually.” This expression is useful when describing what generally happens.

din “din” means “your” and identifies the brain as belonging to the person being addressed. It comes before “hjerne” in “din hjerne.”

hjerne “hjerne” means “brain” here, the part of the body said to need a break. It is the subject of “har brug for en pause” in the sentence.

brug for “brug for” is the complete expression for “need” in “har brug for en pause.” “brug” contributes the idea of use or need, while “for” connects that need to the thing needed; a reliable pattern is “har brug for” followed by an object.

en “en” means “a” in “en pause” and introduces one indefinite break. It appears before “pause” when referring to a break without specifying which one.

pause “pause” means “break” here, the rest period the brain needs. The phrase “en pause” names the break that is needed.

Skal “Skal” asks whether something should happen in “Skal jeg øve mit ordforråd senere?” It is useful at the beginning of a question when asking whether one should do an activity.

øve “øve” means “review” or “practise” here, referring to working with vocabulary again. It follows “Skal jeg” in the question about what to do later.

mit “mit” means “my” and identifies the vocabulary as belonging to the speaker. It comes directly before “ordforråd” in “mit ordforråd.”

ordforråd “ordforråd” means “vocabulary” here, the words the speaker plans to review. It is the object of “øve” in “øve mit ordforråd.”

senere “senere” means “later” and places the vocabulary review after the current break. It appears at the end of the question “Skal jeg øve mit ordforråd senere?”.

Start “Start” means “start” and gives an instruction about what to do first. In “Start med de lettere ord,” it introduces the first items to choose.

med “med” means “with” in “Start med de lettere ord.” It links the action of starting to the words that should be used first.

de “de” means “the” here and points to the particular words recommended for review. It comes before “lettere ord” in “de lettere ord.”

lettere “lettere” means “easier” here and identifies the words that should be reviewed first by comparing their difficulty with other words. It describes “ord” in “de lettere ord.”

ord “ord” means “words” here, specifically the vocabulary items to review after returning. It follows “de lettere” in “de lettere ord.”

når “når” means “when” and introduces the condition or time for starting the review. It begins the clause “når du kommer tilbage.”

du “du” means “you” and identifies the person who will come back. It is the subject before “kommer” in “du kommer tilbage.”

kommer “kommer” means “come” here as part of “kommer tilbage,” meaning come back. It describes the addressee’s return in the clause introduced by “når.”

tilbage “tilbage” means “back” and completes “kommer tilbage,” describing a return to the study session. This expression is useful when someone returns to a place or activity.

lukker “lukker” means “close” here and describes what the speaker does with the notebook while resting. It is used with the object “notesbogen” in “Jeg lukker notesbogen.”

notesbogen “notesbogen” means “the notebook” and refers to the specific notebook used for studying. It is the object of “lukker” in “Jeg lukker notesbogen.”

mens “mens” means “while” and introduces an action happening during the same period as another action. In this sentence, it links closing the notebook with resting.

hviler “hviler” means “rest” here and describes the speaker’s activity during the time the notebook is closed. It appears with “mig” in “mens jeg hviler mig.”

Så “Så” means “then” here and introduces the result or next step after the break. It appears at the beginning of “Så kan vi fortsætte mere roligt.”

kan “kan” means “can” and expresses the possibility of continuing after the break. A common pattern is “kan” followed by an action, as in “kan vi fortsætte.”

vi “vi” means “we” and identifies the speaker and the other person together. It is the subject of “kan ... fortsætte.”

fortsætte “fortsætte” means “continue” and describes returning to the study activity. It follows “kan” in “kan vi fortsætte mere roligt.”

mere “mere” means “more” here and increases the degree of the calm manner described by “roligt.” It is placed before “roligt” in “mere roligt.”

roligt “roligt” means “calmly” here and describes how the two people can continue after resting. Together with “mere,” “mere roligt” means “more calmly.”

Grammar Points

Imperativ: verbets stamme uden -e

Læg arbejdet til side og hvil et øjeblik.

LEH AH-bye-thuh teel SEE-thuh oh VEE-l uh UR-yuh-BLEEK.

Put the work aside and rest for a moment.

The imperative often uses the verb stem without -e: lægge → læg and hvile → hvil.

have brug for + substantiv

Hjernen har brug for en pause.

YAIR-nun hah broo for en POW-suh.

The brain needs a break.

Danish expresses “need” with have brug for, followed by the thing that is needed.

Danish Vocabulary

arbejde noun

AH-bye-thuh work

betyde verb

beh-TOO-thuh mean betyder

et øjeblik phrase

uh UR-yuh-BLEEK a moment

hvile verb

VEE-luh rest Hvil

koncentrere sig phrase

kon-sen-TRAY-ruh say concentrate

lang tid phrase

lahng TEETH a long time

lægge verb

LEH-guh put; lay Læg

nu adv

noo now

som regel phrase

som RAY-gul usually; as a rule

studere verb

stoo-THAY-uh study studeret

svær adj

SVAIR difficult; hard svært

til side phrase

teel SEE-thuh aside

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

I've been studying for a long time.

Show Answer

Jeg har studeret i lang tid.

Put your work aside.

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Læg dit arbejde til side.

Rest for a moment.

Show Answer

Hvil dig et øjeblik.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

rest

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Hvil

work

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arbejde

difficult; hard

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svært

study

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studeret