lykkes at

Succeed in (Lykkes)

Level 4

The verb lykkes is a 'deponent' verb, meaning it always ends in -s but has an active meaning. It is most commonly used in the impersonal construction: Det lykkes mig at... (It succeeds for me to...).

How It Works

1. Morphology and Tense
Because lykkes is a deponent verb, the -s is part of the verb itself, not a passive marker. The most important distinction is between the present and past tense, which sound very similar:

  • Present: lykkes (e.g., Det lykkes altid - It always succeeds)
  • Past: lykkedes (e.g., Det lykkedes i går - It succeeded yesterday)

2. No Imperative Form
Note that lykkes has no command form. You cannot tell someone to "succeed" using this verb. Instead, you would use a phrase like Hav succes! or Held og lykke!.

3. The Impersonal Construction
The standard pattern is: Det + lykkes/lykkedes + (for) + [person] + at + [infinitive]. The person is in the object form (mig, dig, etc.), and the preposition for is optional but very common.

4. Perfect Tenses
When using the perfect tense, lykkes typically takes the auxiliary verb være (to be) rather than have, especially in impersonal constructions.
Example: Det er lykkedes mig (It has succeeded for me / I have managed).

5. Nuance vs. 'Klare'
While klare implies managing something through effort or coping, lykkes focuses on the successful outcome or the fact that something 'turned out' well.

Personal Subject: A common personal pattern is lykkes med: Hun lykkedes med projektet or Hun lykkedes med at finde en løsning. Here med introduces the task or action. This does not mean every noun after lykkes takes med: in Projektet lykkedes, projektet is the subject, not a following complement.

DDO also records personal lykkes i and lykkes at, with either have or være in the perfect; some speakers object to personal constructions altogether. The traditional impersonal Det er lykkedes mig at... avoids this variation.

Examples (6)

  1. Det lykkedes mig endelig at finde mine nøgler.

    I finally managed to find my keys.

    Word by Word: It succeeded me finally to find my keys.

    This uses the past tense 'lykkedes' and the standard impersonal construction.

  2. Det lykkes sjældent at bage et perfekt brød i første forsøg.

    One rarely succeeds in baking a perfect bread on the first try.

    Word by Word: It succeeds rarely to bake a perfect bread in first attempt.

    Here, 'lykkes' is in the present tense, describing a general truth.

  3. Det er endnu ikke lykkedes forskerne at finde en kur.

    Scientists have not yet succeeded in finding a cure.

    Word by Word: It is yet not succeeded the-scientists to find a cure.

    This shows the perfect tense using 'er' as the auxiliary verb.

  4. Jeg håber, at det vil lykkes for dig.

    I hope that you will succeed.

    Word by Word: I hope that it will succeed for you.

    Using 'for dig' is an alternative way to specify the person who succeeds.

  5. Projektet lykkedes over al forventning.

    The project succeeded beyond all expectations.

    Word by Word: The-project succeeded over all expectation.

    In this case, the 'thing' (the project) is the subject, which is a common variation.

  6. Hun lykkedes med projektet.

    She succeeded with the project.

    Word by Word: She succeeded with project-the.

    The personal subject hun takes lykkedes med before the noun naming the project.

Common Mistakes

  • Confusing the present (lykkes) and past (lykkedes) tense.

    Det lykkes mig at vinde i går.
    Det lykkedes mig at vinde i går.

    Because they sound similar, learners often forget the 'de' in the past tense. Use 'lykkedes' for completed past actions.

  • Using 'have' instead of 'være' in the perfect tense.

    Det har lykkedes mig at finde en løsning.
    Det er lykkedes mig at finde en løsning.

    In the impersonal construction (Det er lykkedes...), you must use 'være'. While 'have' is sometimes heard in personal constructions (Jeg har lykkedes med...), using 'være' is the traditional norm and the safest way to become proficient in this pattern.

  • Transferring the personal subject into the traditional impersonal construction.

    Det lykkedes jeg at finde vej.
    Det lykkedes mig at finde vej.

    In the impersonal pattern, use the object form mig. Personal Jeg lykkedes med at finde vej is also attested; modern personal lykkes can occur with med, i, or directly before at, so missing med is not universally a grammar error.

How It Connects

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lykkes atLevel 4Succeed in (Lykkes)

Learn This First

To understand 'lykkes at', you need to be familiar with how Danish uses the infinitive marker 'at'. You also need to understand that 'lykkes' is a deponent verb (ending in -s but having an active meaning) and that it typically uses a formal subject 'det' combined with an object pronoun to indicate who is succeeding.

Words in This Pattern

lykkesat