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Jaynie’s Danish Log (TAC 2015)

 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log Post Reply
15 messages over 2 pages: 1
agantik
Triglot
Senior Member
France
Joined 4429 days ago

217 posts - 335 votes 
Speaks: French*, English, Italian
Studies: German, Norwegian

 
 Message 9 of 15
02 January 2015 at 4:37pm | IP Logged 
Godt nytt år! All the best for 2015 and your Danish studies!
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Jaynie
Senior Member
Denmark
Joined 5704 days ago

51 posts - 62 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Danish, Latin

 
 Message 10 of 15
03 January 2015 at 10:45pm | IP Logged 
I'm happy enough with the week. Most of my shopping conversations are routine and predictable enough that they don't even count as speaking practice. But yesterday I returned a defective Christmas gift and had to explain what was wrong with the item.

Today, I went for a walk with a friend. We ended up chanting går and gør until I had the two completely differentiated. Apparently, I was a bit off.


I am going to try to implement something at home, which is to start a language nest in the kitchen. Only Danish is allowed in the kitchen now. We did this at one time, but then slacked off. Well, it is a new year, right?

I have some things lined up for listening that I am looking forward to.   

In an attempt to rectify my habit of sliding over the small words, I am trying to read more carefully. Right now, I am confused over this construction:

ved at + infinitive / something
e.g., Jeg er ved at bygge noget.

I am building something? I am about to build something?


Last but not least, I went to the library and found a grammar workbook that I am over-the-moon excited about. It is Grammatik i brug and I hope to order a copy later this month.

Edited by Jaynie on 03 January 2015 at 11:49pm

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daegga
Tetraglot
Senior Member
Austria
lang-8.com/553301
Joined 4315 days ago

1076 posts - 1792 votes 
Speaks: German*, EnglishC2, Swedish, Norwegian
Studies: Danish, French, Finnish, Icelandic

 
 Message 11 of 15
04 January 2015 at 12:16am | IP Logged 
Jaynie wrote:
Right now, I am confused over this construction:

ved at + infinitive / something
e.g., Jeg er ved at bygge noget.

I am building something? I am about to build something?


Could be either. But in this case, rather the former I guess. But those small words have
so many different meanings and nuances, it's terrible.
As for the latter, it seems to be more like "I'm close to / almost doing something" (ie.
the negative side of "I'm about to"), usually with an additional "lige": Du er lige ved at
få dig et lag tæsk! (You are SO close to getting a round of beatings!)
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Jaynie
Senior Member
Denmark
Joined 5704 days ago

51 posts - 62 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Danish, Latin

 
 Message 12 of 15
20 January 2015 at 3:36pm | IP Logged 
I have been studying Latin more than Danish recently. Why? Because I have a study partner for Latin and I was lagging behind. I am all caught up now.

But there have been some highlights to my Danish studies that I can log:

My favorite thing that I learned recently is that one does not say held og lykke to someone if you want to wish the person good luck on exams. Instead, it is better to say pøj pøj.

The other day, I lost my hat while out shopping. I went back to the five shops and asked about my hat in Danish. I had a Danish friend with me so she helped me think up different ways to ask the question / describe the item - just for the fun of it.

I went to two fitness classes this week. Generally speaking, I find it very difficult to understand fitness instructors due to the poor acoustics and the background music. But at the end of the yoga class, the room is very quiet and the instructor talks you through a relaxation sequence. I have to admit that instead of focusing on the relaxation, I was focused on what she was saying :) Alas, I still have a LONG way to go before I will be able to understand all general conversation.








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Jaynie
Senior Member
Denmark
Joined 5704 days ago

51 posts - 62 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Danish, Latin

 
 Message 13 of 15
01 February 2015 at 6:17pm | IP Logged 
I went to see a play this weekend, and was disappointed in my ability to follow the
dialogue.

On a more positive note, I have learned lots of new science words for a project that I am
working on.
1 person has voted this message useful





Iversen
Super Polyglot
Moderator
Denmark
berejst.dk
Joined 6497 days ago

9078 posts - 16473 votes 
Speaks: Danish*, French, English, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Swedish, Esperanto, Romanian, Catalan
Studies: Afrikaans, Greek, Norwegian, Russian, Serbian, Icelandic, Latin, Irish, Lowland Scots, Indonesian, Polish, Croatian
Personal Language Map

 
 Message 14 of 15
02 February 2015 at 10:04am | IP Logged 
Jaynie wrote:
My favorite thing that I learned recently is that one does not say held og lykke to someone if you want to wish the person good luck on exams. Instead, it is better to say pøj pøj.


That may be different for different folks - I could definitely see myself saying "held og lykke" to someone before an exam. But "pøj pøj" is also possible (though rarely seen in writing). Just for your collection of oddities: you can also say "knæk og bræk". This sounds like the most evil greeting you can imagine, but everybody knows that it isn't meant to be taken literally. You can even say it to people going on a ski holiday without angering them.

About "ved at": the normal meaning is that you are doing something, and in English that would be expressed by using a continuous -ing form. The thing you are doing may have both dire and sudden consequences, and therefore you can use the phrase to give a hint (or warning), but the core meaning is that something is going on.

On the other hand "lige ved at" implies that something is going to happen soon, but right now the case may be that nothing is going on. Here the core meaning is that something is going to happen.


Edited by Iversen on 02 February 2015 at 10:09am

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Jaynie
Senior Member
Denmark
Joined 5704 days ago

51 posts - 62 votes 
Speaks: English*
Studies: Danish, Latin

 
 Message 15 of 15
28 April 2015 at 3:45pm | IP Logged 
Obviously, I have not regularly posted to my log. Well, I am going to try again...

LATIN
I have finished the first 11 chapters of my Latin textbook (Latin for the New
Millennium). I think I have thoroughly learned the grammar. Vocabulary is still shaky
in spots.

DANISH

I have done a lot, but I will keep it brief since I have not logged in a long time.

(1) I prefer reading fiction that was originally written in Danish. Since I am still
at a fairly low level, I asked a friend to give me a list of Danish children's
authors. Last week, I read Otto er et næsehorn by Ole Lund Kirkegaard. I also
listened to the audiobook.

(2) I have been watching the daily news (DR TV Avisen) on my computer. The program
runs about twenty minutes,and I can turn Danish subtitles on.

(3) I have really been thinking about learning vocabulary. Vocabulary is my #1
problem. My listening comprehension is reasonably good for TV, audiobooks, and movies
if I know the words. Understanding Danish people who are actually in my presence is a
different issue :) Some of them just talk too fast for me.

I will write about my vocab plan / studies next time.


Edited by Jaynie on 28 April 2015 at 3:47pm



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