When two or more people do something to each other, English uses "each other" or "one another." Danish has a dedicated word for this — hinanden — but it also has two competing ways of expressing the same idea, and choosing between them is part of sounding natural. This page lays out the full reciprocity system: the pronoun hinanden, its archaic cousin hverandre, and the reciprocal -s verbs (mødes, ses, skændes). Crucially, it contrasts hinanden with the reflexive sig selv, because confusing the two changes who is doing what to whom.
hinanden — "each other"
hinanden is the standard reciprocal pronoun in modern Danish. It is invariant — one form for all subjects, two people or many — and it sits where an object would.
De to brødre ligner hinanden enormt meget.
The two brothers look a lot like each other.
Vi har kendt hinanden, siden vi var børn.
We've known each other since we were children.
Naboerne hjælper altid hinanden med havearbejdet.
The neighbours always help each other with the gardening.
Although the word literally derives from hin + anden ("the one… the other"), in modern usage it simply means "each other" regardless of how many people are involved — Danes use hinanden freely for groups, not just pairs.
hverandre — the archaic variant
You will meet hverandre in older texts, formal or elevated prose, and a few set phrases. Traditional prescriptive grammars once reserved hverandre for "more than two" and hinanden for "exactly two," but this distinction is dead in modern Danish — hinanden now covers all cases, and hverandre sounds dated.
De elskede hverandre til deres sidste dag.
They loved one another until their last day.
That sentence reads as literary or archaic; in everyday speech a Dane would say De elskede hinanden. Recognise hverandre when reading, but produce hinanden.
hinandens — the genitive "each other's"
To say "each other's," add the genitive -s: hinandens.
De læste hinandens breve uden tilladelse.
They read each other's letters without permission.
Vi passer tit hinandens børn om aftenen.
We often look after each other's children in the evening.
The crucial contrast: hinanden vs sig selv
This is where the real comprehension stakes lie. The reflexive sig (and emphatic sig selv) means each person does the action to themselves; hinanden means each person does it to the other. Same subject, completely different event.
De vasker sig.
They wash (themselves) — each washes their own body.
De vasker hinanden.
They wash each other — each washes the other person.
Børnene slog sig.
The children hurt themselves.
Børnene slog hinanden.
The children hit each other.
The minimal pair shows that this is not a subtlety you can leave to context — sig and hinanden point in opposite directions. (For the reflexive sig in full, see pronouns/reflexive-sig.)
The third option: reciprocal -s verbs
Danish has a small set of verbs where the -s ending itself carries reciprocal meaning — "do to each other" is baked into the verb, so no separate pronoun is needed. These overlap with the deponent/passive -s verbs but are specifically reciprocal in sense. The most common:
| -s verb | Meaning | Built from |
|---|---|---|
| mødes | to meet (each other) | møde (to meet) |
| ses | to see each other / meet up | se (to see) |
| skændes | to quarrel (with each other) | skænde |
| slås | to fight (each other) | slå (to hit) |
| kysses | to kiss (each other) | kysse |
| følges | to go together / accompany each other | følge |
Skal vi mødes klokken syv foran biografen?
Shall we meet at seven in front of the cinema?
Vi ses i morgen!
See you tomorrow! (literally: we see each other tomorrow)
De skændes konstant om penge.
They argue constantly about money.
Often the -s verb and the hinanden phrasing are interchangeable: de mødes ≈ de møder hinanden; de slås ≈ de slår hinanden. The -s form tends to be more idiomatic and compact, especially in fixed conversational formulas like vi ses ("see you"). (These verbs are catalogued under verbs/deponent-s-verbs.)
The three-way system, side by side
Reciprocity in Danish is rarely taught as a single system, but it helps to see all three routes together:
| Route | Form | Means | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reflexive | sig (selv) | to oneself | De ser sig selv i spejlet (they see themselves) |
| Reciprocal pronoun | hinanden | to each other | De ser hinanden hver dag (they see each other) |
| Reciprocal verb | -s ending | to each other (built in) | De ses hver dag (they meet up) |
Knowing all three means you can both decode what you read and pick the most natural form when you speak.
Common Mistakes
❌ De hjælper sig med lektierne.
Incorrect for 'each other' — sig means 'themselves.'
✅ De hjælper hinanden med lektierne.
They help each other with the homework.
❌ Vi har kendt os i mange år.
Incorrect — os/sig is reflexive, not reciprocal.
✅ Vi har kendt hinanden i mange år.
We've known each other for many years.
❌ De læste hinanden breve.
Incorrect — 'each other's' needs the genitive hinandens.
✅ De læste hinandens breve.
They read each other's letters.
❌ Vi mødes hinanden klokken syv.
Incorrect — mødes already means 'meet each other'; don't double it.
✅ Vi mødes klokken syv.
We're meeting at seven.
❌ Børnene slog sig hele eftermiddagen.
Says the children hurt themselves all afternoon — probably not the intended meaning.
✅ Børnene slog hinanden hele eftermiddagen.
The children were hitting each other all afternoon.
Key Takeaways
- hinanden = "each other," invariant, for any number of people. hverandre is archaic/literary — recognise but don't produce.
- The genitive is hinandens ("each other's").
- sig (selv) = to oneself; hinanden = to each other. The minimal pair vasker sig / vasker hinanden changes the event entirely.
- Reciprocal -s verbs (mødes, ses, skændes, slås) build "each other" into the verb — don't add hinanden on top of them.
Now practice Danish
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Start learning Danish→Related Topics
- The Reflexive Pronoun SigA2 — Danish sig is the 3rd-person reflexive (singular and plural) used when the object refers back to the subject; learn the full mig/dig/sig/os/jer set, sig selv vs hinanden, and the inherently reflexive verbs.
- Lexical -s Verbs: Synes, Mødes, FindesB2 — Danish verbs that carry a fixed -s with non-passive meaning — reciprocals like mødes and ses, and deponent/middle verbs like synes, findes, and lykkes — plus how to conjugate them and why they are not passives.
- Sin/Sit/Sine vs Hans/Hendes/DeresB2 — The reflexive possessive sin/sit/sine points back to the clause subject; hans/hendes/deres point to someone else — a meaning switch, not a style choice.
- Personal Pronouns: Subject and Object FormsA1 — The Danish subject/object pronoun pairs (jeg/mig, du/dig, han/ham…), where each form goes, and the uniquely Danish capital I meaning 'you all'.