Languages · Dansk
Video Chat with Danish Speakers
The best way to practice Danish with native speakers is to listen to lots of real, spoken Danish, because the language sounds quite different from how it's written. On Omlet you can set the country filter to Denmark, press Start and have a free 1-on-1 video chat with someone there, no sign-up needed.
Danish (dansk) is the language of Denmark and is also widely used in the Faroe Islands and Greenland. It's a North Germanic language: written Danish is very close to Norwegian Bokmål, while the spoken language is known for its soft consonants and swallowed endings. That's exactly why live conversation helps so much.
Omlet doesn't match people by language, and its interface is in English. To practice, filter by country or ask the people you meet. Below are phrases with a pronunciation guide, the sounds that trip learners up, and Danish's famously unusual numbers.
Where people speak Danish
Danish (Dansk) is an official language in 2 countries and territories. To meet people from one of them, pick it with the country filter.
- Denmark
- Faroe Islands
Useful Danish phrases for video chat
Short, natural phrases you can use in your first minute on camera. The pronunciation is a simple English-style guide; stressed syllables are in capitals.
| English | Danish | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Hi! | Hej! | HIGH |
| How's it going? | Hvordan går det? | vo-DAN GOR deh |
| Good, thanks. And you? | Godt, tak. Hvad med dig? | GOT, TAHK. va meth DIE |
| What's your name? | Hvad hedder du? | va HETH-uh doo |
| My name is … | Jeg hedder … | yai HETH-uh |
| Nice to meet you. | Hyggeligt at møde dig. | HÜG-geh-lit ah MØ-thuh die |
| Where are you from? | Hvor kommer du fra? | vor KOM-muh doo FRAH |
| I'm learning Danish. | Jeg lærer dansk. | yai LAIR-uh DANSK |
| Can you speak a little more slowly? | Kan du tale lidt langsommere? | kan doo TAA-leh lit LANG-som-meh-ruh |
| How do you say … in Danish? | Hvordan siger man … på dansk? | vo-DAN SEE-uh man … poh DANSK |
| What do you do for work? | Hvad arbejder du med? | va AH-bai-duh doo meth |
| I don't understand. | Jeg forstår det ikke. | yai fo-STOR deh IG-geh |
| What time is it where you are? | Hvad er klokken hos dig? | va air KLOG-gen hos die |
| Thanks for the chat! See you! | Tak for snakken! Vi ses! | TAHK fo SNAG-gen! vee SAYS |
Tips for practicing Danish on video chat
- Tell your partner early that you're learning. If they switch to English to help you, it's fine to ask "Kan vi tale dansk?" (Can we speak Danish?).
- Focus on listening before perfect pronunciation. Many endings are barely pronounced, so words in fast speech can sound very different from their spelling.
- When you can't catch a word, ask your partner to type it in the text chat. Seeing the spelling right next to the sound helps you map one to the other.
- Learn hygge and hyggelig early. They describe a cozy, pleasant, relaxed feeling and turn up often in friendly conversation, including in "Hyggeligt at møde dig."
- Denmark uses Central European Time, so 7 to 10 p.m. in Copenhagen is 1 to 4 p.m. on the US East Coast for most of the year. Our guide to the best time to chat across time zones helps you plan.
Why spoken Danish sounds so different
Danish spelling preserves older pronunciations, and the spoken language has moved on. A few features explain most of the surprises:
- Soft d: after a vowel, d often sounds like the "th" in "this", so mad (food) sounds close to "math" said with that soft th.
- Stød: a short catch in the voice, a little like the break in "uh-oh". It can change meaning: hun (she) has none, while hund (dog) has one.
- Swallowed endings: -er and -re often shrink to a soft "uh", and g after a vowel can disappear, as in siger (says), which sounds like "SEE-uh".
- Vowels: Danish has more vowel sounds than most languages, including æ, ø and å. The guide on this page keeps ø and ü where English has no match.
Try the classic tongue twister rødgrød med fløde (red berry pudding with cream) on a chat. It's a fun icebreaker, and it trains your soft d and ø at the same time.
Danish numbers: counting in twenties
Danish numbers from 50 to 90 come from an old system of counting in twenties, and they surprise almost every learner. You'll hear them whenever people mention ages, prices or times, so it's worth learning them by sound.
| Number | Danish | Rough logic |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | halvtreds | half-third times twenty (2.5 × 20) |
| 60 | tres | three times twenty |
| 70 | halvfjerds | half-fourth times twenty (3.5 × 20) |
| 80 | firs | four times twenty |
| 90 | halvfems | half-fifth times twenty (4.5 × 20) |
Danish also puts the ones before the tens: 21 is enogtyve (one-and-twenty) and 75 is femoghalvfjerds (five-and-seventy). If your partner says a number you don't catch, ask them to type it.
Du, small talk and wrapping up
Like the other Scandinavian languages, Danish uses informal du with almost everyone; the formal De survives mainly in very formal settings. On a video chat, du is always the right choice.
Easy small-talk topics include where your partner lives, what they're doing this weekend (i weekenden), food, cycling and travel. When it's time to go, "Tak for snakken!" (thanks for the chat) is a common, friendly way to wrap up before you press Next.
If you're offering English or another language in return, see how language exchange on video chat works on Omlet, so both of you get useful practice.
Practice Danish with the country filter
Omlet's interface is in English only, and it doesn't match people by language or translate anything. There are two easy ways to find Danish speakers:
- Use the country filter. Press Country, pick a country where Danish is spoken (for example Denmark or Faroe Islands), then press Start.
- Ask whoever you meet. On Worldwide matching, a quick "Do you speak Danish?" costs nothing to try.
The country filter's first day is free (you add a card to start, and can cancel in Settings before the charge). After that it's $3 one time for that device and browser, with no subscription. It can make matching slower when fewer people from that country are online; if a match takes a while, try another country or switch back to Worldwide.
Say you're practicing Danish in your first sentence and ask your partner to slow down or correct you. It's a normal request.