Checking medicine instructions safely | Learn Danish in English

Danish lesson set in a contemporary Copenhagen everyday setting: At home, two adults prepare questions for a pharmacist about a medicine label, food cautions, side effects, and warning signs..

EN → DA / Level: B1

About This Lesson

Use Checking medicine instructions safely to practice Danish conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Jeg er ikke sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket.

yai air IG-uh SIG-uh poh, uh yai foh-STOR DEN-uh meh-deh-SEE-neh-tee-GAID I am not sure I understand this medicine label.
B

Ring til apotekeren, før du tager den næste dosis.

RING-uh till ah-poh-TAY-guh-ren, fair doo TAY-uh den NESS-duh DOH-sees Call the pharmacist before you take the next dose.
A

Jeg vil også spørge, om jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer.

yai vil OH-soh SPUR-uh, om yai burr oon-GOH be-STEM-duh FUR-uh-vair I also want to ask whether I should avoid certain foods.
B

Det er værd at undersøge, især hvis etiketten nævner måltider.

deh air VAIR uh oon-duh-SUR-uh, ee-SAIR vis eh-tee-KET-en NEV-nuh MOHL-tee-er That is worth checking, especially if the label mentions meals.
A

Jeg fik en mild hovedpine, efter at jeg havde taget det.

yai fik en mild HOH-uh-pee-nuh, EF-ter uh yai HAY-thuh TAY-uhd deh I had a mild headache after taking it.
A

Så bør jeg nævne det.

soh burr yai NEV-nuh deh So I should bring that up.
B

Spørg, om det kan være en bivirkning, og hvilke advarselstegn du skal holde øje med.

SPUR-uh, om deh kan VAIR en BEE-virg-ning, oh VIL-keh ahd-VAIR-sel-stain doo skal HOL-uh UH-yuh meh Ask whether it could be a side effect and what warning signs to watch for.
A

Det føles risikabelt at gætte, især når det gælder medicin.

deh FUR-liss ree-see-KAH-belt uh GET-uh, ee-SAIR nor deh GEL-uh meh-deh-SEEN Guessing feels risky, especially with medicine.
B

En fagperson kan forklare risiciene mere tydeligt.

en FAG-pair-sohn kan foh-KLARE-uh ree-SEE-uh-nuh MEH-reh TOO-thuh-lit A professional can explain the risks more clearly.
A

Jeg kan skrive spørgsmålene ned, før jeg ringer.

yai kan SKREE-vuh SPORSMOHL-uh-nuh ned, fair yai RING-uh I can write down the questions before calling.
B

Det burde gøre det lettere at følge med i samtalen.

deh BOO-uh GUR-uh deh LET-uh-reh uh FUR-luh meh ee sam-TAY-len That should make the call easier to follow.

Word by Word

Jeg Jeg means “I” here, referring to the speaker. It is the subject in Jeg er ikke sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket and is used when stating something about oneself.
er Er means “am” in Jeg er ikke sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket. It links the speaker to the description sikker and is used with a subject followed by a description.
ikke Ikke makes the statement negative: the speaker is not sure. In Jeg er ikke sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket, it comes before sikker to deny that certainty.
sikker Sikker means “sure” or “certain” in ikke sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket. The expression sikker på, at... links certainty to the following content.
på På is part of the expression sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket, linking the speaker’s certainty to what follows. The whole expression, rather than på alone, means being sure about something.
at At introduces the content clause in sikker på, at jeg forstår denne medicinetiket. It also marks the infinitive in at gætte, where it is followed directly by the infinitive form.
forstår Forstår means “understand” in jeg forstår denne medicinetiket. It describes whether the speaker understands the medicine label and is used with the thing understood after it.
denne Denne means “this” and points to the particular label in denne medicinetiket. It comes directly before the noun it identifies.
medicinetiket Medicinetiket means “medicine label,” the label whose instructions the speaker is trying to understand. It is a compound naming a label connected with medicine.
Ring Ring is a direct instruction to call, as in Ring til apotekeren. The pattern Ring til + a person is used to tell someone to phone that person.
til Til connects Ring with the person being called in Ring til apotekeren. In this use, it identifies the recipient of the call.
apotekeren Apotekeren means “the pharmacist” in Ring til apotekeren. It is the definite form of apoteker and names the person who should be called.
før Før means “before” and introduces the time relation in før du tager den næste dosis. It places the call earlier than the action that follows.
du Du means “you” and refers to the person receiving the instruction. In før du tager den næste dosis, it is the subject of the following clause.
tager Tager means “take” in du tager den næste dosis. It describes the action the listener is expected to perform and is followed by the dose being taken.
den Den means “the” in den næste dosis and identifies one particular dose. It comes before the adjective næste and the noun dosis.
næste Næste means “next” in den næste dosis. It identifies the dose that comes after the current one.
dosis Dosis means “dose,” the amount of medicine referred to in den næste dosis. The word can be used after a modifier such as næste to identify a particular dose.
vil Vil expresses want or intention in Jeg vil også spørge, om jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer. It is followed by the infinitive spørge to say what the speaker wants to do.
også Også means “also” and adds another intention in Jeg vil også spørge. It shows that asking about food is an additional question.
spørge Spørge means “ask” in vil også spørge, om jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer. It follows vil in the infinitive and can introduce an indirect question with om.
om Om introduces an indirect yes-or-no question in spørge, om jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer and om det kan være en bivirkning. It connects spørge with the question being asked.
bør Bør expresses advice or what is considered advisable in jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer and bør jeg nævne det. It is followed by an infinitive to state the recommended action.
undgå Undgå means “avoid” in jeg bør undgå bestemte fødevarer. It follows bør and takes the foods being avoided after it.
bestemte Bestemte means “certain” or “specific” in bestemte fødevarer. It narrows the meaning to particular foods rather than food in general.
fødevarer Fødevarer means “foods” in bestemte fødevarer. It names the items the speaker is considering avoiding because of the medicine.
Det Det refers to a preceding situation or statement in the dialogue, such as the checking being worth doing or guessing feeling risky. It appears as Det at the beginning of a sentence and as det elsewhere, with capitalization determined by sentence position.
værd Værd contributes the meaning “worth” in Det er værd at undersøge. The expression værd at + infinitive describes an action as worthwhile.
undersøge Undersøge means “check” or “investigate” in Det er værd at undersøge. It follows at in the expression describing what is worth checking.
især Især means “especially” and gives extra emphasis in især hvis etiketten nævner måltider. It highlights the condition that follows as particularly relevant.
hvis Hvis means “if” and introduces a condition in hvis etiketten nævner måltider. It connects the main statement with the situation that would make it relevant.
etiketten Etiketten means “the label” in hvis etiketten nævner måltider. It is the definite form of etiket and is the subject of nævner.
nævner Nævner means “mentions” in etiketten nævner måltider. It describes information appearing on the label and is followed by the thing mentioned.
måltider Måltider means “meals” in etiketten nævner måltider. It identifies the meal-related information that the label may mention.
fik Fik expresses that the speaker experienced or developed something in Jeg fik en mild hovedpine. Here it describes the headache as something that occurred after taking the medicine.
en En is the indefinite article in en mild hovedpine and En fagperson. It introduces one non-specific singular noun, while En is capitalized because it begins a sentence.
mild Mild means “mild” and describes the headache in en mild hovedpine. It gives the intensity of the symptom.
hovedpine Hovedpine means “headache” in en mild hovedpine. It names the symptom the speaker experienced after taking the medicine.
efter Efter means “after” in efter at jeg havde taget det. The expression efter at introduces an action that happened earlier than the main event.
havde Havde means “had” in jeg havde taget det. Together with taget, it places the taking of the medicine before the later event of getting a headache.
taget Taget is the form used with havde in jeg havde taget det to mean “taken.” It completes the expression describing the earlier action of taking the medicine.
Så Så means “so” or “therefore” in Så bør jeg nævne det. It introduces a conclusion drawn from the earlier statement about the headache.
nævne Nævne means “mention” or “bring up” in bør jeg nævne det. It follows bør and names the action of telling the pharmacist about the earlier symptom.
Spørg Spørg is the direct instruction “ask” in Spørg, om det kan være en bivirkning. It is used at the beginning of a request and is related to the infinitive spørge.
kan Kan expresses possibility in om det kan være en bivirkning, meaning that something could be a side effect. It is followed by the infinitive være.
være Være means “be” in det kan være en bivirkning. It follows kan and links the possible explanation with bivirkning.
bivirkning Bivirkning means “side effect” in det kan være en bivirkning. It names the possible explanation for the headache.
og Og means “and” and joins two parts of the instruction in Spørg, om det kan være en bivirkning, og hvilke advarselstegn du skal holde øje med. It adds the question about warning signs to the question about the side effect.
hvilke Hvilke means “which” or “what” in hvilke advarselstegn du skal holde øje med. It asks the listener to identify the particular warning signs involved.
advarselstegn Advarselstegn means “warning signs” in hvilke advarselstegn du skal holde øje med. It names the signs that the listener should watch for.
skal Skal expresses an instruction or expectation in du skal holde øje med. It is followed by the phrase describing what the listener should watch for.
holde øje med Together, holde øje med means “keep an eye on” or “watch for.” In this expression, holde means “hold,” øje means “eye,” and med means “with”; the watched-for item is connected through med, as in holde øje med advarselstegn.
føles Føles means “feels” in Det føles risikabelt at gætte. It describes how the action of guessing seems to the speaker and is followed by a description of that feeling.
risikabelt Risikabelt means “risky” in Det føles risikabelt at gætte. It describes guessing as an action that may be unsafe in this medicine-related situation.
gætte Gætte means “guess” in risikabelt at gætte. It follows at and names the action that feels risky.
når Når means “when” in især når det gælder medicin. It introduces the situation in which the statement applies and frames medicine as the relevant topic.
gælder Gælder means “concerns” or “applies to” in når det gælder medicin. The reusable pattern når det gælder + a topic is used to identify the subject under discussion.
medicin Medicin means “medicine” in når det gælder medicin. It identifies the topic to which the concern about guessing applies.
fagperson Fagperson means “professional” in En fagperson kan forklare risiciene mere tydeligt. It refers to someone with relevant professional knowledge who can provide an explanation.
forklare Forklare means “explain” in kan forklare risiciene mere tydeligt. It follows kan and takes the risks being explained as its object.
risiciene Risiciene means “the risks” in forklare risiciene mere tydeligt. It is the definite form referring to the risks connected with the medicine.
mere Mere means “more” in mere tydeligt. It increases the degree of clarity and is used here to compare the professional’s explanation with a less clear explanation.
tydeligt Tydeligt means “clearly” in forklare risiciene mere tydeligt. It describes the manner of explaining and shows that the explanation should be easier to understand.
skrive Skrive means “write” in Jeg kan skrive spørgsmålene ned. It follows kan and names the action the speaker can perform before calling.
spørgsmålene Spørgsmålene means “the questions” in skrive spørgsmålene ned. It refers to the specific questions the speaker plans to prepare for the call.
ned Ned contributes the meaning “down” in skrive spørgsmålene ned. Together with skrive, it describes recording the questions in written form.
ringer Ringer means “call” or “ring” in før jeg ringer. It describes the speaker’s planned phone call and is related to the instruction Ring til apotekeren.
burde Burde expresses an expected or likely result in Det burde gøre det lettere at følge med i samtalen. It is followed by gøre and presents the result as something that should happen.
gøre Gøre means “make” in Det burde gøre det lettere at følge med i samtalen. It describes the written questions causing the call to become easier to follow.
lettere Lettere means “easier” in gøre det lettere at følge med i samtalen. It describes the improved level of ease created by writing down the questions.
følge med i Together, følge med i means “follow” or “keep up with” something, as in følge med i samtalen. Følge contributes “follow,” med contributes the idea of going along, and i links the phrase to what is being followed.
samtalen Samtalen means “the conversation” or “the call” in følge med i samtalen. It is the definite form of samtale and names the phone conversation that should become easier to follow.

Grammar Points

værd at + infinitiv

Det er værd at undersøge.

deh air VAIR uh oon-duh-SUR-uh

It is worth checking.

Efter værd at står verbet i infinitiv: værd at undersøge betyder “worth checking”.

skrive ... ned

Skriv dosis ned.

SKRIV DOH-seh ned

Write down the dose.

I dette faste verb står ned efter objektet: dosis kommer mellem skrive og ned.

Danish Vocabulary

apoteker noun
ah-poh-TAY-guh pharmacist apotekeren
bestemt adj
be-STEMT certain; specific bestemte
dose noun
DOH-suh dose dosis
forstå verb
foh-STOR understand forstår
fødevare noun
FUR-uh-vair food fødevarer
især adv
ee-SAIR especially
medicinetiket noun
meh-deh-SEE-neh-tee-GAID medicine label
ringe til verb
RING-uh till call Ring til
sikker adj
SIG-uh sure; certain
spørge verb
SPUR-uh ask
undgå verb
oon-GOH avoid
værd at undersøge phrase
VAIR uh oon-duh-SUR-uh worth checking

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

So I should bring that up.

Show AnswerSå bør jeg nævne det.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

pharmacist

Show Answerapotekeren

ask

Show Answerspørge

avoid

Show Answerundgå

understand

Show Answerforstår