Pronouns
Personal Pronouns
Subject Form
Subject pronouns are used as the subject of a sentence - the person or thing performing the action. They typically come before the verb, following the same basic sentence structure as English.
| Danish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | ||
| jeg | I | Jeg taler dansk. (I speak Danish) |
| du | you (informal) | Du er min ven. (You are my friend) |
| han | he | Han læser en bog. (He reads a book) |
| hun | she | Hun spiser et æble. (She eats an apple) |
| den | it (common gender) | Den er rød. (It is red) |
| det | it (neuter gender) | Det er godt. (It is good) |
| Plural | ||
| vi | we | Vi er her. (We are here) |
| I | you (plural) | I taler dansk. (You speak Danish) |
| de | they | De bor i København. (They live in Copenhagen) |
Object Form
Peter kører mig hjem, Jens giver dem en banan.
Like in English, but unlike many other languages, the object form is also used in: Det er mig, der kører bilen.
| Danish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | ||
| mig | me | Han ser mig. (He sees me) |
| dig | you (informal) | Jeg kan se dig. (I can see you) |
| ham | him | Vi kender ham. (We know him) |
| hende | her | De taler med hende. (They talk with her) |
| den | it (common gender) | Jeg har den. (I have it) |
| det | it (neuter gender) | Jeg ser det. (I see it) |
| Plural | ||
| os | us | De besøger os. (They visit us) |
| jer | you (plural) | Vi kan høre jer. (We can hear you) |
| dem | them | Jeg kender dem. (I know them) |
Reflexive Form
Peter vasker sig, børnene sætter sig i sofaen.
| Danish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | ||
| mig selv | myself | Jeg vasker mig selv. (I wash myself) |
| dig selv | yourself | Du skal passe på dig selv. (You should take care of yourself) |
| sig selv | himself/herself/itself | Han barberer sig selv. (He shaves himself) |
| Plural | ||
| os selv | ourselves | Vi glæder os selv. (We please ourselves) |
| jer selv | yourselves | I skal hjælpe jer selv. (You should help yourselves) |
| sig selv | themselves | De vasker sig selv. (They wash themselves) |
Reflexive Usage Examples
Han kysser sin kone.
He kisses his (own) wife.
Uses 'sin' because it refers to the subject's own wife
Han kysser hans kone.
He kisses his wife (someone else's wife)
Uses 'hans' because it refers to another person's wife
Hun tager sin taske.
She takes her (own) bag.
Uses 'sin' because it refers to the subject's own bag
Hendes taske er stor.
Her bag is big.
Uses 'hendes' because it's not referring back to the subject
Possessive Pronouns
Possessive pronouns show ownership or belonging. In Danish, some possessive pronouns change form based on gender and number.
Min, din and sin are declined according to gender and number, like adjectives: min stol (common), mit bord (neuter), mine nøgler (plural)
Sin is a reflexive possessive pronoun. It always refers back to the subject of the same clause.
Possessive Pronouns List
| Danish | English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | ||
| min/mit/mine | my/mine | Det er min bog. (It's my book) |
| din/dit/dine | your/yours (informal) | Er det din taske? (Is that your bag?) |
| hans | his | Det er hans ur. (It's his watch) |
| hendes | her/hers | Det er hendes hus. (It's her house) |
| dens | its (common gender) | Katten og dens killing. (The cat and its kitten) |
| dets | its (neuter gender) | Træet og dets blade. (The tree and its leaves) |
| sin/sit/sine | his/her/its own | Han kysser sin kone. (He kisses his [own] wife) |
| Plural | ||
| vores | our/ours | Det er vores hus. (It's our house) |
| jeres | your/yours (plural) | Er det jeres bil? (Is that your car?) |
| deres/Deres | their/theirs, your/yours (polite) | Det er deres børn. (They are their children) |