The Benefactive Reflexive
When doing something for your own comfort or enjoyment, you can use the benefactive reflexive by adding a reflexive pronoun (sig for third-person subjects) as an indirect object. Just like saying "grab ourselves a coffee" in English, this structure is very common in Danish when talking about personal indulgences or treating yourself.
| The man takes a day off for himself and buys himself a new bathrobe. | Manden tager sig en fridag og køber sig en ny morgenkåbe. |
| The grandfather has bought himself a warm bathrobe and soft slippers. | Bedstefaren har købt sig en varm morgenkåbe og bløde hjemmesko. |
Getting and Grabbing
Common verbs used with this structure include at få (to get), at tage (to take), and at snuppe (to grab). The word order is straightforward: subject + verb + sig + direct object (what you are treating yourself to).
| She often gets herself a freshly baked bread roll at the bakery. | Hun får sig ofte et nybagt rundstykke hos bageren. |
| The student has taken a long break and grabbed himself a croissant. | Eleven har taget sig en lang pause og snuppet sig en croissant. |
Pouring and Preparing
Verbs for preparing food and drink—such as at skænke (to pour), at smøre (to butter/make a roll), or at skære (to cut)—also often take sig.
Remember that sig is used for all third-person subjects, both singular (han, hun, den, det) and plural (de).
| The woman pours herself a cup of tea from the teapot. | Kvinden skænker sig en kop te fra tepotten. |
| The boy makes himself a bread roll with jam when he is hungry. | Drengen smører sig et rundstykke med marmelade når han er sulten. |
| They grab themselves a break and buy themselves an ice cream. | De snupper sig en pause og køber sig en is. |