Learn Hardcore Danish: Han beder sin søster om hjælp, fordi han er træt. - He asks his sister for help because he is tired.

Correct: Han beder sin søster om hjælp.
For a question: Han spørger sin søster, hvad klokken er.
To ask whether she will help: Han spørger sin søster, om hun vil hjælpe. Using spørge om hjælp is unnatural in Danish.

Why is it sin søster and not hans søster?

Danish uses the reflexive possessive sin/sit/sine when the possessor is the subject of the same clause. Here, the subject han owns the sister, so it’s sin søster. Hans would refer to another man’s sister (someone else’s).

Han beder sin søster om hjælp. = his own sister
Han beder hans søster om hjælp. = another man’s sister

How do sin, sit, and sine work?

They agree with the possessed noun (not with the owner):

sin
- common-gender singular: sin søster, sin bog
sit
- neuter singular: sit hus, sit barn
sine
- all plurals: sine søstre, sine børn They can only refer back to the subject of the same clause.

Why is it om hjælp? Could I say for/efter hjælp?

With bede, Danish idiomatically uses om: bede (nogen) om (noget). Other prepositions change or break the meaning:

bede om hjælp = ask for help
bede for nogen = pray for someone
bede efter … is not used in this sense Stick with om for requests.

How do I say “ask his sister to help” instead of “for help”?

Use om at + infinitive:

Han beder sin søster om at hjælpe. Compare:
Request a thing: beder om hjælp
Request an action: beder om at hjælpe

What happens to word order after fordi?

Fordi introduces a subordinate clause with normal subject–verb order (no inversion). So:

Correct: …, fordi han er træt.
Wrong: …, fordi er han træt. If you put the reason first, invert in the main clause:
Fordi han er træt, beder han sin søster om hjælp.

Do I need the comma before fordi?

Both are accepted, depending on comma style:

Traditional (startkomma): comma before all subordinate clauses: …, fordi han er træt.
New comma: the comma is optional here: … fordi han er træt. In practice, many writers keep the comma; choose one system and be consistent.

Can I use for or da instead of fordi?

for can mean “for/because” and links two main clauses: Han beder sin søster om hjælp, for han er træt. It’s a bit more written/formal in modern Danish.
da can mean “as/since (because)” and is more formal/literary: Da han er træt, beder han sin søster om hjælp. fordi is the neutral, all-purpose “because.”

Why is there no article before hjælp?

hjælp is uncountable in this meaning, so no article: om hjælp. You can say en (stor) hjælp in expressions like Det er en stor hjælp, but not when requesting help in general.

Is beder also “to pray”?

Yes. bede has two main uses:

Request: bede (nogen) om (noget) — ask/request
Pray: bede til Gud, bede for nogen Context and prepositions distinguish them.

What are the principal forms of bede?

Infinitive: at bede
Present: beder
Past (preterite): bad
Past participle: har bedt Examples: Han beder nu. Han bad i går. Han har bedt mange gange.

Why is it træt and not trætte?

Predicate adjectives after er are uninflected in the singular: han er træt, hun er træt. Use trætte for plural or definite forms:

Plural: De er trætte.
Definite/attributive: den trætte mand, de trætte børn

Can I rephrase to “ask for help from his sister”?

Yes, but the structure changes slightly and the focus shifts:

Person-focused (most natural): Han beder sin søster om hjælp. (He asks his sister for help.)
Help-focused: Han beder om hjælp fra sin søster. (He asks for help from his sister.) Both are correct; the first is more common.

Any quick pronunciation tips for the tricky words?

beder: the d is a soft, voiced sound; think “BEH-ther” (not a hard d).
søster: ø like French “eu” (rounded), final -er is a reduced sound.
hjælp: initial hj is pronounced like English y; roughly “yelp” with Danish vowels.
fordi: stress the last syllable: for-DI.
træt: æ like the vowel in “cat”; Danish r can be uvular; final t is clear.