{"id":1454,"date":"2016-08-27T13:57:49","date_gmt":"2016-08-27T13:57:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/?p=1454"},"modified":"2016-09-30T12:43:09","modified_gmt":"2016-09-30T12:43:09","slug":"fun-and-special-words-in-danish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/2016\/08\/27\/fun-and-special-words-in-danish\/","title":{"rendered":"Fun and special words in Danish"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Photo courtesy of Cyclonebill at Flickr<\/a>, CC License.)<\/p><\/div>\n

Sometimes learning Danish vocabulary can be really fun \u2013 you discover items that make you giggle or shake your head in disbelief: How could anyone even think <\/i>of an expression like that? A Romanian Danish-learner I knew, was absolutely thrilled by the word agurk<\/b> [uh-GOOAK] (cucumber). \u201dIt sounds like something an alien would say!\u201d he enthused, before repeating the word several times: agurk, agurk<\/b>. Below are some words that I myself find really great. What are your<\/i> favourites? Please drop a line in the comments section. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

A snabel-a<\/b> is the @ sign. It literally means \u201delephant\u2019s trunk a\u201d! There really is something about Danes and elephants\u2026 A special kind of strong beer is called elefant\u00f8l<\/b>, while elefantsnot<\/b> (elephant\u2019s snot) is the kind of clay you use to attach posters to a hard wall\u2026<\/p>\n

When you give someone elevatorblikket <\/b>(the elevator stare), it means you\u2019re scanning their entire body with your eyes.<\/p>\n

Some Danes joke about having a rugbr\u00f8dsmotor<\/b> (rye bread motor). You know, they need their daily fix of Danish rye bread in order to function properly\u2026 And, speaking of Danish cravings \u2013 there\u2019s a reason a (beer) bottle opener is sometimes called a samfundshj\u00e6lper<\/b> (society helper).<\/p>\n

Have you been too long on a Danish island and got \u00f8kuller<\/b> (island dizzyness)? Maybe you just need to l\u00e6gge hovedet i bl\u00f8d<\/b> (\u201dsoak your head\u201d = rack your brain) or slappe af<\/b> (\u201dslacken off\u201d = relax) below a pensionistgrill<\/b> (\u201dpensioner grill\u201d = slang for a heat lamp!)<\/p>\n

Some Danish words can be really poetic, too:<\/p>\n

\u2022 kuldsk\u00e6r<\/b> means \u201dsensitive to cold\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022 vakkelvorn<\/b> means \u201dwhich is unstable and could easily collapse\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022 hjemve <\/b>literally translates as \u201dhome-ouch!\u201d and \u2013 of course \u2013 refers to homesickness. The opposite is udve<\/b> \u2013 the urge to travel out<\/i> and see the world<\/p>\n

\u2022 d\u00f8gn<\/b> means \u201dday and night\u201d \u2013 so a d\u00f8gnkiosk<\/b> is a kiosk which is open 24\/7<\/p>\n

And the Danish word for a \u201dblackbird\u201d is just so beautiful \u2013 but of course I\u2019m biased. \ud83d\ude09 It\u2019s \u2026 solsort <\/b>(sun black).<\/p>\n

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Update: The reader J\u00f8rgen mentions another meaning of rugbr\u00f8dsmotor<\/strong>: In\u00a0his experience,\u00a0Min pl\u00e6neklipper har rugbr\u00f8dsmotor\u00a0<\/strong>would mean that \u201dMy lawn mower has no motor, so I have to push it myself\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

Sometimes learning Danish vocabulary can be really fun \u2013 you discover items that make you giggle or shake your head in disbelief: How could anyone even think of an expression like that? A Romanian Danish-learner I knew, was absolutely thrilled by the word agurk [uh-GOOAK] (cucumber). \u201dIt sounds like something an alien would say!\u201d he…<\/p>\n

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