Barnet ser sig i spejlet.

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Breakdown of Barnet ser sig i spejlet.

• se: to see
• spejlet: the mirror
• sig: itself

Questions & Answers about Barnet ser sig i spejlet.

Why does the sentence use sig instead of ham or hende?

In Danish, sig is a reflexive pronoun that refers back to the subject (in this case, Barnet). Unlike English, which often uses "himself" or "herself," Danish uses sig for the third-person singular reflexive. So when the child is looking at him- or herself, the pronoun must be sig, not ham or hende.

What does the definite form spejlet indicate?

Spejlet is the definite form of spejl (meaning "mirror"). In Danish, adding the suffix -et to a neuter noun makes it definite, so spejlet translates to "the mirror." If it were the indefinite form, you would see et spejl ("a mirror").

Why is it Barnet instead of something like Et barn?

Barnet means "the child," using the definite article attached at the end (a typical feature of Scandinavian languages). If you wanted to say "a child," you would say et barn. Here, because we’re talking about a specific child, it’s Barnet.

Is there a difference between saying ser sig and ser sig selv?