Language/Swedish/Grammar/Reflexive-pronouns
Հայերէն
Български език
官话
官話
Hrvatski jezik
Český jazyk
Nederlands
English
Suomen kieli
Français
Deutsch
עברית
हिन्दी
Magyar
Bahasa Indonesia
فارسی
Italiano
日本語
Қазақ тілі
한국어
Lietuvių kalba
Νέα Ελληνικά
Şimali Azərbaycanlılar
Język polski
Português
Limba Română
Русский язык
Српски
Español
العربية القياسية
Wikang Tagalog
தமிழ்
ภาษาไทย
Türkçe
Українська мова
Urdu
Tiếng Việt
As a Swedish teacher, I have noticed that many students struggle with reflexive pronouns, which are used very differently in Swedish than in English. Reflexive pronouns are used to indicate that the subject of the sentence is also the object of the sentence, for example: "I wash myself." In Swedish, these pronouns can be a bit tricky to use correctly, so let's take a look at them in more detail.
What are reflexive pronouns?
Reflexive pronouns are pronouns that are used when the subject of a sentence is also the object of a sentence. These are different from regular pronouns, which are used to replace a noun in a sentence. In Swedish, reflexive pronouns are used much more often than in English, so it's important to understand how they work.
How are reflexive pronouns used in Swedish?
In Swedish, reflexive pronouns are used in a variety of situations, such as:
- To indicate that an action is being done to oneself, for example: "Jag tvättar mig." (I wash myself.)
- To indicate that two or more people are doing something to each other, for example: "Vi hjälper varandra." (We help each other.)
- As an intensifier, to emphasize an action, for example: "Jag förstår inte riktigt själv." (I don't really understand myself.)
Swedish reflexive pronouns are formed by adding "sig" to the end of a pronoun. Here are some examples:
| Swedish | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| jag | ya(g) | I |
| du | doo | you (singular) |
| han | hahn | he |
| hon | hohn | she |
| den | dehn | it (common gender) |
| det | deht | it (neuter gender) |
| vi | vee | we |
| ni | nee | you (plural) |
| de | deh | they |
These pronouns can be used both in the subject and object position in a sentence.
Reflexive verbs
In Swedish, reflexive pronouns are often used with reflexive verbs. These are verbs that require the use of a reflexive pronoun to make sense. For example:
- "Att tvätta sig" (to wash oneself)
- "Att klä på sig" (to get dressed)
- "Att sätta sig" (to sit down)
Notice that these verbs are different from their non-reflexive counterparts. For example, "att tvätta" means "to wash", but "att tvätta sig" means "to wash oneself".
Reflexive pronouns in questions
In Swedish, reflexive pronouns are often used in questions to indicate that the subject is also the object. For example:
- "Tvättar du dig?" (Are you washing yourself?)
- "Kläder du på dig?" (Are you getting dressed?)
Recap
Reflexive pronouns are an important part of Swedish grammar, and are used much more often than in English. They are used to indicate that the subject and object of a sentence are the same, and can be used with reflexive verbs or in questions. To form a reflexive pronoun in Swedish, simply add "sig" to the end of a pronoun.
I hope that this lesson has been helpful in explaining reflexive pronouns in Swedish! If you have any questions or want to practice using reflexive pronouns, feel free to contact me.
Sources