Sætte means "to put, place, set" — but Danish, unlike English, does not have one all-purpose "put." It has three, sorted by the orientation the object ends up in: sætte for things set down in a seated or upright resting position, stille for things stood up, and lægge for things laid down flat. Sætte is the transitive verb (it takes an object: you sætte something somewhere), and its reflexive twin sætte sig means "sit down" — the action that lands you in the state described by sidde. Sorting out which placement verb to use, and keeping sætte sig (sit down) distinct from sidde (be seated), is the work of this page.
Principal parts
| Infinitive | Present | Past (datid) | Past participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| (at) sætte | sætter | satte | (har) sat |
Sætte is technically a weak verb of the -te class, but the past is slightly irregular: the stem vowel shifts and the double t collapses to one — satte (not "sætte-de"), with the participle sat. Keep the æ in the infinitive and present (sætte, sætter) and the a in the past forms (satte, sat); the vowel alternation is part of the pattern.
Sætte across the tenses
Present — sætter. The verb is transitive, so it needs an object and usually a place:
Jeg sætter koppen på bordet.
I put the cup on the table.
Past — satte:
Hun satte tasken fra sig og satte sig ned.
She put her bag down and sat down.
Present perfect — har + the participle sat:
Hvem har sat bilen i garagen?
Who has put the car in the garage?
Imperative — sæt!:
Sæt dig ned og slap af.
Sit down and relax.
The placement triad: sætte vs stille vs lægge
This is the part with no English shortcut — you must choose by the object's resulting orientation. The logic is consistent once you see it:
| Verb | Resulting position | Typical objects |
|---|---|---|
| sætte | seated / based, resting on its bottom | a cup, a vase, a child in a chair, a plant in a pot |
| stille | standing, upright | a bottle, a glass on its base, a ladder against the wall |
| lægge | lying, flat | a book, a knife, a phone face-down, a person in bed |
The boundary between sætte and stille is the fuzziest — both can mean "stand something up" — but a good rule of thumb is that sætte settles an object onto its broad base or "seat" (a cup on a table, a box on the floor), while stille emphasises standing it on a narrow base or lining it up (a bottle in a row, a chair in position).
Stil flaskerne i køleskabet og læg osten på den nederste hylde.
Put the bottles (standing) in the fridge and lay the cheese on the bottom shelf.
Sæt blomsterne i vasen, så stiller jeg vasen i vindueskarmen.
Put the flowers in the vase, then I'll stand the vase on the windowsill.
Sætte sig: the reflexive "sit down"
Add the reflexive object (mig, dig, sig, os, jer) and sætte turns inward: you place yourself into a seat — i.e., you sit down. This is the action that produces the state sidde.
Sæt dig her ved siden af mig.
Sit down here next to me.
Da filmen begyndte, satte alle sig til rette.
When the film started, everyone settled into their seats.
Common collocations and fixed expressions
Sætte is enormously productive with particles and in idioms — well worth learning these whole:
| Expression | Meaning |
|---|---|
| sætte sig | sit down |
| sætte pris på | appreciate, value |
| sætte i gang | start, set in motion |
| sætte sig ind i | familiarise oneself with, get to grips with |
| sætte penge ind | deposit money |
Jeg sætter stor pris på din hjælp.
I really appreciate your help.
Lad os sætte projektet i gang i morgen.
Let's get the project started tomorrow.
A short dialogue
– Hvor skal jeg sætte kassen? – Bare sæt den på gulvet og sæt dig så ned — du har båret nok i dag.
– Where should I put the box? – Just put it on the floor, and then sit down — you've carried enough today.
The same verb appears twice doing different work: transitive sætte kassen (put the box) and reflexive sætte sig ned (sit yourself down).
Common mistakes
❌ Jeg sætter mig på stolen, så jeg sætter behageligt.
Wrong: once seated you are in a state — that's sidder (sidde), not sætter.
✅ Jeg sætter mig på stolen, så jeg sidder behageligt.
Correct: sætte sig (sit down) → sidde (be seated).
❌ Sæt bogen på bordet.
Wrong if the book lies flat: a flat object is laid down with lægge, not sætte.
✅ Læg bogen på bordet.
Correct: a book lies flat, so lægge.
❌ Jeg har sætte koppen i opvaskemaskinen.
Wrong participle: the past participle of sætte is sat.
✅ Jeg har sat koppen i opvaskemaskinen.
Correct: har sat = 'have put.'
❌ Jeg setter pris på din hjælp.
Wrong orthography: it's sætte with æ, not 'setter.'
✅ Jeg sætter pris på din hjælp.
Correct: sætter, with the æ.
Key takeaways
- Sætte = put/place into a seated or based position, transitively. It needs an object.
- Choose among sætte / stille / lægge by the object's resulting orientation: seated, standing, or lying flat.
- Sætte sig = sit down (the action); the resulting state is sidde (be seated).
- Forms: sætter – satte – har sat. Note the æ→a vowel shift in the past.
- High-value idioms: sætte pris på (appreciate), sætte i gang (start), sætte sig ind i (get to grips with).
For the state that results from sætte sig, see sidde; for the lay-down member of the triad, see lægge; and for the upright member, see stille.
Now practice Danish
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Start learning Danish→Related Topics
- SiddeA2 — The strong verb sidde — to be seated (a state, not an action) — plus the sidder og + verb posture-progressive, with full principal parts and tenses.
- LæggeA2 — Full reference for lægge ('to lay / put down') — principal parts, all core tenses in natural sentences, the reflexive lægge sig ('lie down'), and the strict transitive/intransitive split against ligge that every English speaker has to master.
- StilleB1 — Full reference for the Danish verb stille ('to place upright; to pose a question') — its principal parts, the idiom stille et spørgsmål, the placement trio stille/sætte/lægge, and key particle verbs.
- Reflexive VerbsA2 — Inherently reflexive Danish verbs that always need sig/mig/dig — glæde sig, skynde sig, sætte sig, føle sig, gifte sig, more sig, lægge sig — and how they differ from reciprocals.