Breakdown of Hun arbejder som forfatter og er meget indadvendt og tilbageholdende af sig.
være
to be
hun
she
og
and
arbejde
to work
meget
very; much, a lot
som
as (in a role)
sig
oneself / himself / herself / themselves
forfatteren
the author
af sig
by nature (with a reflexive pronoun)
indadvendt
introverted
tilbageholdende
reserved
Questions & Answers about Hun arbejder som forfatter og er meget indadvendt og tilbageholdende af sig.
How does the phrase af sig work here, and why does it use sig?
The phrase af sig is used with adjectives to describe an inherent character trait, translating roughly to "by nature" or "at heart". It requires a reflexive pronoun that matches the subject. Because the subject of this sentence is the third-person hun, the reflexive pronoun is sig. If the subject were jeg, the phrase would change to af mig.
Could I just leave out af sig and say she is indadvendt og tilbageholdende?
Yes, the sentence is completely grammatical without it. However, adding af sig changes the nuance. It emphasizes that these traits are a fundamental, deep-seated part of her personality, rather than just how she happens to be behaving in a specific situation.
How are the adjectives indadvendt and tilbageholdende formed?
They are highly literal compounds. indadvendt combines indad (inward) and vendt (turned, the past participle of vende). tilbageholdende combines tilbage (back) and holdende (holding, the present participle of holde). So literally, she is "inward-turned" and "back-holding".
Why is there no word for "a" before forfatter?
When stating someone's profession, role, or nationality in Danish, you usually omit the indefinite article (en or et). This rule applies consistently after verbs like være (to be), blive (to become), or phrases like arbejder som (works as).
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