Every Danish noun is either a common-gender word (a/an = en) or a neuter word (a/an = et), and there is no rule you can hear - you learn the gender with the word. About four out of five nouns take en, so guess en if you must.
Examples
- En kaffe, tak.
- A coffee, please.
- Et glas vin, tak.
- A glass of wine, please.
- Jeg vil gerne have en te.
- I'd like a tea.
- Jeg køber et brød.
- I'm buying a loaf of bread.
The mistake to avoid
Using en with neuter words ("en glas" instead of et glas) - always store the noun together with its en/et.
Where this fits in
Food & ordering, Danish A1: Order at a café or restaurant, ask for the bill, and talk about basic food and drink.