Jeg lægger mobilen fra mig, når vi spiser aftensmad.

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Breakdown of Jeg lægger mobilen fra mig, når vi spiser aftensmad.

• når: when
• vi: we
• spise: to eat

Questions & Answers about Jeg lægger mobilen fra mig, når vi spiser aftensmad.

Why is it lægger and not ligger?

Because at lægge means to lay / put something somewhere, while at ligge means to lie / be lying somewhere.

• Jeg lægger mobilen fra mig = I put the phone down.
• Mobilen ligger på bordet = The phone is lying on the table.

So here the speaker is doing the action of putting the phone aside, which is why Danish uses lægger.

What does fra mig mean here?

In this sentence, lægge noget fra sig is a very common expression meaning to put something down / put something aside.

So Jeg lægger mobilen fra mig is not just word-for-word I lay the phone away from me. It is an idiomatic Danish way to say that you put it down and stop holding or using it.

The last part changes with the subject:

• jeg → fra mig
• du → fra dig
• han/hun/man → fra sig
• vi → fra os

So the sentence uses fra mig because the subject is jeg.

Why is it mobilen and not en mobil or min mobil?