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Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig.

Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig.
If I have a headache, I stay at home and rest.

Breakdown of Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig.

jeg
I
og
and
i
in
hvis
if
mig
myself
hvile
to rest
blive
to stay
hjemme
at home
hovedet
the head
have ondt
to have pain / to hurt
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Questions & Answers about Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig.

Why is there a comma after hovedet?

In Danish it’s normal to put a comma between a subordinate clause and the main clause.

  • Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, = subordinate clause (condition)
  • bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig. = main clause (result)

So the comma marks the boundary between the two clauses.

Why does the word order change to bliver jeg instead of jeg bliver?

Danish has V2 word order in main clauses: the finite verb is the second element. When the sentence starts with something other than the subject (here, the Hvis-clause), the main clause uses inversion:

  • Starting with subject: Jeg bliver hjemme.
  • Starting with a clause: Hvis ..., bliver jeg hjemme.

So bliver comes before jeg because the first “slot” is taken by the initial Hvis-clause.

Why is Hvis used here, and could it be Når instead?
  • Hvis = if (a condition; may or may not happen)
  • Når = when/whenever (more like a regular or expected situation)

Both can sometimes work, but the nuance changes:

  • Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet... = If I have a headache (and I might not).
  • Når jeg har ondt i hovedet... = When/whenever I have a headache (this happens sometimes; a habitual pattern).
How does har ondt work грамmatically—why not a verb meaning “to hurt”?

Danish commonly uses the construction at have ondt = “to be in pain / to hurt.”

  • har = “have”
  • ondt literally relates to “painfully/bad” and functions as part of the fixed expression

So jeg har ondt i hovedet is the standard idiomatic way to say “I have a headache / my head hurts.”

Why is it i hovedet (in the head) and not something like “my head”?

Danish often expresses pains with ondt + preposition + definite body part:

  • ondt i hovedet (headache)
  • ondt i maven (stomachache)
  • ondt i ryggen (back pain)

It’s idiomatic: the pain is located in that body area.

Why is it hovedet (definite “the head”) and not mit hoved (“my head”)?

With body parts, Danish frequently prefers the definite form rather than a possessive:

  • Jeg har ondt i hovedet. (natural)
  • Jeg har ondt i mit hoved. (possible, but sounds marked/less idiomatic—often used only for emphasis or contrast)

The definite form already implies it’s your own body part in this context.

What does bliver mean here—why not er?

at blive literally means “to become,” but it’s also used for “to stay/remain” in certain situations.
In bliver jeg hjemme, it means I stay home / I remain at home (i.e., I don’t go out/go to work).

Jeg er hjemme would just describe a state (“I am at home”), not the decision/action of staying home because of the condition.

Is the tense correct? Why present tense (har, bliver, hviler) when it refers to the future?

Yes. Danish often uses the present tense for general conditions and future results, especially in if/when sentences:

  • Hvis jeg har ... , bliver jeg ... = “If I have ..., I’ll ...”

Adding a separate “will” is not required; the conditional meaning comes from Hvis and context.

Why is there no så (“then”) in the main clause?

Danish can include så (“then”) after a conditional clause, but it’s optional here:

  • Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, (så) bliver jeg hjemme...

Including så can make the logical “then” relationship more explicit, but leaving it out is very common and natural.

Why is it hjemme and not hjem?
  • hjem = motion toward home (“(go) home”)
  • hjemme = location (“at home”)

Here you’re talking about staying in a location, so hjemme is correct:

  • Jeg går hjem. = I go home.
  • Jeg bliver hjemme. = I stay home.
Why does the second verb phrase stay og hviler mig instead of switching to og hviler jeg mig?

After og when the subject is the same, Danish usually does not repeat inversion. The main clause already has V2 with bliver jeg; the coordinated verb phrase just continues with normal order:

  • bliver jeg hjemme og hviler mig = “I stay home and rest”

If you add a new clause with its own “slot 1” element, then word order could change, but not in this simple coordination.

What is mig doing in hviler mig—is at hvile reflexive?

In Danish, “to rest” is often expressed reflexively as at hvile sig:

  • Jeg hviler mig. = I rest (literally “I rest myself”)

You may also see at hvile without sig in some contexts, but hvile sig is very common for “take a rest / rest.”

How would the sentence change if I used vil (“will”)?

You can add vil for emphasis/explicit intention, but it’s not necessary:

  • Hvis jeg har ondt i hovedet, vil jeg blive hjemme og hvile mig.

Notice that after vil, Danish uses the infinitive:

  • vil
    • blive (not bliver)
  • and then hvile mig (infinitive) if you keep parallel structure: ... vil jeg blive hjemme og hvile mig.