I spegeln ser hon hur blå hennes ögon är.

In the mirror she sees how blue her eyes are.

Breakdown of I spegeln ser hon hur blå hennes ögon är.

• vara: to be
• i: in
• hon: she
• se: to see
• hur: how
• hennes: her
• blå: blue
• spegeln: the mirror
• ögat: the eye

Questions & Answers about I spegeln ser hon hur blå hennes ögon är.

Why does ser come before hon? In English we say “she sees”, not “sees she”.

Swedish has a V2 word order rule in main clauses: the finite verb usually comes in second position, no matter what is first.

• First position here is the phrase I spegeln (In the mirror).
• Because of V2, the verb ser must come next.
• The subject hon comes after the verb:

I spegeln (1) ser (2) hon (3) ...

If you start with the subject, you get “normal” English-like order:

Hon ser i spegeln hur blå hennes ögon är.
She sees in the mirror how blue her eyes are.

Both Swedish sentences are correct; the original just puts focus on I spegeln by moving it first.

Can I say Hon ser i spegeln hur blå hennes ögon är instead? Is there any difference?

Yes, that sentence is perfectly correct and very natural Swedish.

• I spegeln ser hon ... puts slight emphasis or topicalization on the mirror: In the mirror, she sees...
• Hon ser i spegeln ... is a more neutral, everyday order: She sees in the mirror...

Meaning-wise, they’re practically the same; it’s mostly a nuance of focus and style.

Why is it I spegeln and not i en spegel? What’s the difference?

• I spegeln = in the mirror (definite form, spegel + n)
• I en spegel = in a mirror (indefinite, en spegel)

Using spegeln implies a specific mirror that is known from context:

• the bathroom mirror, a mirror in front of her, etc.

Using i en spegel would sound like introducing some random, not previously known mirror. In a story, i spegeln is more idiomatic.

Why is it hur blå hennes ögon är and not hur blå är hennes ögon?

Because this is not a question; it’s a subordinate clause (“how blue her eyes are”) after ser.

• In direct questions, you use inversion:
  • Hur blå är hennes ögon? – How blue are her eyes?
• In subordinate clauses, you do not invert:
  • ... hur blå hennes ögon är. – ... how blue her eyes are.

So:

• Question: Hur blå är hennes ögon?
• Reported/embedded: Hon ser hur blå hennes ögon är.

Why is the verb är at the very end of the sentence?

Inside the clause hur blå hennes ögon är, Swedish word order is:

hur (how) + blå (blue) + hennes ögon (her eyes) + är (are)

In Swedish subordinate clauses (like those starting with hur, att, om, etc.), the verb normally comes after the subject and other elements, not in second position as in main clauses.

So:

• Main clause question: Hur blå är hennes ögon? (verb in 2nd position)
• Subordinate clause: ... hur blå hennes ögon är. (verb later)

What exactly does hur mean here? Is it like English how?

Yes. Hur corresponds to English how.

Here it means:

• hur blå = how blue

It expresses degree/intensity, not method:

• She sees how blue her eyes are (how intensely blue).

Compare:

• Hur mår du? – How are you?
• Hon undrar hur gammal han är. – She wonders how old he is.
• Hon ser hur blå hennes ögon är. – She sees how blue her eyes are.

Why is it blå and not blåa with an -a ending?

Blå is the basic adjective form “blue”. In this sentence, it is predicative (comes after är) and refers to ögon (eyes, plural).

For many adjectives in predicative position, especially colors, the base form is common for all genders and numbers:

• Mina ögon är blå. – My eyes are blue.
• Hennes ögon är blå. – Her eyes are blue.

You can hear blåa in speech:

• Mina ögon är blåa.

…but blå is standard and completely correct here. The sentence hur blå hennes ögon är sounds very natural.

Why is it hennes ögon and not sina ögon? Doesn’t sin/sina mean “her own”?

This is an important Swedish point.

• sin / sitt / sina = reflexive possessive (“one’s own”), used when the owner is the subject of the clause.
• hennes = her (non‑reflexive), usually referring to some other woman, not the subject.

So:

• Hon ser i spegeln hur blå sina ögon är.
  = She sees how blue her own eyes are.

• Hon ser i spegeln hur blå hennes ögon är.
  = Most naturally understood as: she sees how blue another woman’s eyes are.

Because your sentence uses hennes, a native speaker would expect that hon and hennes are two different women.
If the meaning was “she sees how blue her own eyes are,” Swedes would normally say sina ögon.

Why is ögon in that form? What happened to ögat?

The noun öga (eye) declines irregularly:

• ett öga – one eye (indefinite singular)
• ögat – the eye (definite singular)
• ögon – eyes (indefinite plural)
• ögonen – the eyes (definite plural)

In the sentence, we are talking about eyes in general, not the eyes as a known set, so ögon (indefinite plural) is used:

hennes ögon är blå – her eyes are blue.

Could we say att hennes ögon är blå instead of hur blå hennes ögon är?

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly.

• Hon ser att hennes ögon är blå.
  = She sees that her eyes are blue. (simple fact)

• Hon ser hur blå hennes ögon är.
  = She sees how blue her eyes are. (focus on the degree/intensity of blueness, often implying surprise or comparison.)

So att introduces a that-clause (fact), while hur focuses on how much / to what extent.

How do you pronounce spegeln and ögon?

Approximate pronunciation:

• spegeln ≈ SPEE‑geln

  • IPA: [ˈspeːɡɛln]
  • spe‑ like English spe- in “speed”, but a bit shorter
  • ‑gel with a hard g, like in “get”
  • final ‑n is clearly pronounced

• ögon ≈ UR‑gon (with rounded lips)

  • IPA: [ˈøːɡɔn]
  • ö is like the vowel in French “deux” or German “schön”
  • ‑gon with a hard g, short o as in British “odd”, plus n

A rough English-friendly breakdown:

• I spegeln → ee SPEE-geln
• ögon → UR-gon (with lips rounded on ö).