His and Her
In the previous lesson, you learned that words like "my" and "your" change to match the gender and number of the noun they describe. However, when talking about a third person—like "his" or "her"—the Danish possessive words are fixed.
Use hans for "his" and hendes for "her". These words never change, regardless of whether the noun they own is an en-word, an et-word, or plural.
| His daughter and his son are here. | Hans datter og hans søn er her. |
| His hair is short. | Hans hår er kort. |
| We help her son and her daughter. | Vi hjælper hendes søn og hendes datter. |
Its (dens, dets)
When saying "its" to talk about a non-human owner, you have two options in Danish: dens and dets.
Here is the trick: the choice depends on the gender of the noun you are referring back to (the owner), not the noun being owned.
If the owner is an en-word (like en bold), use dens.
| I see the ball. Its color is blue. | Jeg ser bolden. Dens farve er blå. |
If the owner is an et-word (like et hus or et barn), use dets.
| The house is old. Its door is green. | Huset er gammelt. Dets dør er grøn. |
| The child is happy. Its toy is red. | Barnet er glad. Dets legetøj er rødt. |
Summary
Here is a quick overview of the third-person possessives:
| English | Danish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| His | hans | Fixed form |
| Her | hendes | Fixed form |
| Its | dens | Refers back to an en-word owner |
| Its | dets | Refers back to an et-word owner |
Let's see a few more examples in action:
| Her hair is long. Its color is red. | Hendes hår er langt. Dets farve er rød. |
| His son has a bird. I do not remember its name. | Hans søn har en fugl. Jeg husker ikke dens navn. |