men

But

Level 1

Men is the standard Danish word for 'but'. It connects two ideas that contrast with each other.

How It Works

The conjunction men is used to express a contradiction, reservation, or contrast. It is very similar to the English 'but'.

1. Word Order (V2 Rule)
Because men is a coordinating conjunction (like og), it does not affect the word order of the following clause. The sentence follows the standard V2 word order. If you use a negation like ikke, it stays after the verb.
Example: Jeg vil gerne, men jeg kan ikke. (I want to, but I cannot.)

2. Punctuation
Danish grammar requires a comma before men when it joins two independent clauses (sentences that each have their own subject and verb). If it only joins two words (e.g., 'small but strong'), no comma is needed.

3. Starting a Sentence
While some older rules suggested otherwise, it is perfectly acceptable in modern Danish to start a new sentence with Men for emphasis.

4. Pronunciation
It is pronounced with a short 'e' sound [mɛn] and usually has no stød. Be careful not to confuse it with the noun mænd (men), which has a distinct stød sound.

Examples (4)

  1. Jeg taler dansk, men han taler engelsk.

    I speak Danish, but he speaks English.

    Word by Word: I speak Danish, but he speaks English.

    Here, 'men' connects two full sentences, so a comma is required before it.

  2. Bilen er gammel, men den er god.

    The car is old, but it is good.

    Word by Word: The-car is old, but it is good.

    Notice that the word order in the second part ('den er god') remains standard subject-verb order.

  3. Han er lille men stærk.

    He is small but strong.

    Word by Word: He is small but strong.

    When 'men' only connects two adjectives, no comma is necessary.

  4. Jeg har en hund, men jeg har ikke en kat.

    I have a dog, but I don't have a cat.

    Word by Word: I have a dog, but I have not a cat.

    Note that 'ikke' comes after the verb 'har', following standard main clause word order.

Common Mistakes

  • Using subordinate word order (putting 'ikke' before the verb) after 'men'.

    Jeg er sulten, men jeg ikke vil spise.
    Jeg er sulten, men jeg vil ikke spise.

    'Men' is a coordinator, not a subordinator. The verb must come before 'ikke' in the clause following 'men'.

  • Omitting the comma before 'men' when connecting two full sentences.

    Hun er sød men hun er træt.
    Hun er sød, men hun er træt.

    In Danish, a comma is mandatory before 'men' when it separates two clauses with their own subjects and verbs.

How It Connects

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menLevel 1But

Learn This First

To use 'men' (but), you should first be comfortable with joining simple ideas using 'og' (and) and understand basic Danish sentence structure.

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