spørge om

Ask Whether (Spørge Om)

Level 3

The Danish expression spørge om is used to report questions that have a yes/no answer (like English 'ask if') or to ask about a specific subject or permission.

How It Works

1. Reported Yes/No Questions
When you want to report a question that could be answered with 'yes' or 'no', you use spørge om. In this context, om translates to 'if' or 'whether'.
Example: Han spurgte, om jeg var sulten (He asked if I was hungry).

2. Word Order Rules
Because om introduces a subordinate clause, you must use subordinate word order. This means the subject comes before the verb, and any sentence adverbs like ikke must come before the verb.
Example: ...om han ikke kommer (NOT: ...om kommer han ikke).

3. Asking for Information vs. Objects
Danish distinguishes between asking for information (spørge) and requesting an object or action (bede).

  • Spørge om: To ask about a topic or for permission (e.g., spørge om vej - ask for directions).
  • Bede om: To request something (e.g., bede om en kop kaffe - ask for a cup of coffee).

4. Verb Conjugation
The verb spørge is irregular. Its forms are:

  • Infinitive: spørge
  • Present: spørger
  • Past: spurgte
  • Past Participle: spurgt

Examples (5)

  1. Han spurgte, om vi havde tid til at hjælpe.

    He asked whether we had time to help.

    Word by Word: He asked, if we had time to to help.

    Here 'om' introduces a reported yes/no question.

  2. Jeg vil gerne spørge om lov til at gå tidligt.

    I would like to ask for permission to leave early.

    Word by Word: I will gladly ask about permission to to go early.

    'Spørge om lov' is a fixed expression for asking permission.

  3. Hun spurgte, om han ikke snart var færdig.

    She asked if he wasn't finished soon.

    Word by Word: She asked, if he not soon was finished.

    Notice how 'ikke' comes before the verb 'var' in the subordinate clause.

  4. De spurgte om vej til stationen.

    They asked for directions to the station.

    Word by Word: They asked about way to station-the.

    'Spørge om vej' means to ask for directions.

  5. Jeg spurgte, om det var sandt.

    I asked if it was true.

    Word by Word: I asked, if it was true.

    A simple reported question using the past tense 'spurgte'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'hvis' instead of 'om' for reported questions.

    Jeg ved ikke, hvis han kommer.
    Jeg ved ikke, om han kommer.

    'Hvis' is only for conditional 'if' (in the event that). For reported questions (whether), you must use 'om'.

  • Using question word order (inversion) in the 'om' clause.

    Han spurgte, om er du glad?
    Han spurgte, om du er glad.

    Subordinate clauses starting with 'om' require the subject to come before the verb.

  • Using 'spørge om' when requesting an object.

    Jeg spurgte om et glas vand.
    Jeg bad om et glas vand.

    Use 'spørge' for information and 'bede' for requesting things.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

spørge omLevel 3Ask Whether (Spørge Om)

Learn This First

To learn 'spørge om', you need to understand how to use the conjunction 'om' (meaning 'whether' or 'if') and how to structure indirect questions. Since these reported questions function as subordinate clauses, you must also be familiar with the specific word order used in Danish subordinate clauses.

Words in This Pattern

spørgeomom