man

One / You (Man)

Level 2

Use man when you want to talk about what people do in general, or to state rules and common experiences without naming a specific person.

How It Works

The pronoun man is a fundamental part of Danish generic sentences. It functions as a placeholder for an unspecified agent and originates from the word for 'man' (mand), which is why it always takes singular, common-gender agreement.

1. Usage:
It is used for general truths, social rules, or shared experiences. For example, 'Man skal vaske hænder' (One/You must wash hands). It is also the primary way to avoid the formal passive voice in everyday speech; for instance, 'Man åbner døren' (One opens the door) is often preferred over 'Døren åbnes'.

2. Word Order:
As a subject pronoun, it follows the V2 rule. If the sentence starts with an adverb, the verb and man swap places: 'Her må man ikke ryge'.

3. Object, Possessive, and Reflexive Forms:
Crucially, man only exists as a subject. For other functions, use these forms:

  • Object: en (often written én).
  • Possessive: ens.
  • Reflexive: sig (e.g., 'Man vasker sig').
  • Reflexive Possessive: sin/sit/sine (e.g., 'Man elsker sin familie').

4. Man vs. Du:
While English often uses 'you' generically, Danish prefers man for general rules. Using du can sometimes feel too personal or direct in a general context.

Examples (5)

  1. Man kan ikke altid få, hvad man ønsker sig.

    One cannot always get what one wants.

    Word by Word: One can not always get what one wishes self.

    This shows 'man' used as a generic subject in both the main and subordinate clause.

  2. Hvordan siger man "apple" på dansk?

    How do you say "apple" in Danish?

    Word by Word: How says one "apple" on Danish?

    A very common way to ask for translations or explanations of rules.

  3. Det kan være svært at vænne sig til ens nye liv.

    It can be hard to get used to one's new life.

    Word by Word: It can be hard to habituate self to one's new life.

    Here, 'ens' is used as the possessive form of the generic 'man'.

  4. Man skal passe sin have.

    One must tend to one's (own) garden.

    Word by Word: One shall tend his/her/its garden.

    When 'man' is the subject, the reflexive possessive 'sin' is used to refer back to it.

  5. Her ryger man ikke.

    One does not smoke here.

    Word by Word: Here smokes one not.

    This demonstrates the V2 word order where 'man' follows the verb because 'Her' starts the sentence.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'man' as an object pronoun.

    Han så man i går.
    Han så én i går.

    'Man' can only be the subject. For the object (me/you/someone), use 'en' or 'én'.

  • Using the wrong form of the reflexive possessive after 'man'.

    Man elsker sit familie.
    Man elsker sin familie.

    Familie is a common-gender word, so the reflexive possessive after 'man' is 'sin', not 'sit'.

How It Connects

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

manLevel 2One / You (Man)

Learn This First

To understand 'man', you first need to be familiar with how subject pronouns work in Danish and how they fit into the standard V2 word order. Additionally, knowing the indefinite article 'en' is helpful because it serves as the object form for 'man'.

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