Questions & Answers about Ilden spreder sig i skoven nu.
Why does the sentence use sig if the fire isn't a person doing something to itself?
This is called the medio-passive reflexive. In English, you can just say 'the fire is spreading' without saying what it spreads. In Danish, if an action like this happens spontaneously without an outside force acting on it, we often use a reflexive pronoun. So the fire literally 'spreads itself' (spreder sig).
Could I use the passive form and say Ilden spredes instead?
You could, but it changes the meaning. Using the passive spredes or bliver spredt often implies that an outside agent is actively spreading it (like a person deliberately setting more fires). Using spreder sig makes it clear that this is a spontaneous, natural event happening on its own.
Why use ilden here instead of branden? Don't both mean 'the fire'?
They do, but they are used slightly differently. Ild refers to the physical element of fire or the flames themselves. A brand is the actual destructive event, like a house fire or a forest fire. While you could absolutely say branden spreder sig, using ilden specifically focuses on the physical flames spreading through the trees.
Why does nu come at the very end of the sentence instead of before the location?
In Danish, when you have multiple adverbs or prepositional phrases at the end of a sentence, the standard rule of thumb is 'Place before Time'. Therefore, the place (i skoven) comes right before the time (nu).