The Formal Way to Say Where Something Is
Befinna sig means to be located — it is what written Swedish uses where speech would simply use vara. A report does not say huset är i norr; it says huset befinner sig i norr.
| reflexive | English | plain equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| befinna sig | to be located | vara |
| förflytta sig | to move, relocate | flytta |
| sprida sig | to spread | — |
| uppföra sig | to behave | bete sig |
| The museum is located in the middle of the city. | Museet befinner sig mitt i staden. |
Uppföra sig is the formal sibling of bete sig, which you already know. Both mean to behave, but uppföra sig is what a teacher says to a class.
Imagining and Assuming
Föreställa sig is to imagine — to form a picture in your own mind, not to invent something. Utgå från is to assume or to take as a starting point, and it is the verb an argument opens with.
| I cannot imagine a life without music. | Jag kan inte föreställa mig ett liv utan musik. |
Settling and Changing
Nöja sig med means to make do with — to accept less than you wanted. Ändra sig means to change one's mind, and note that it is not the same as ändra, which changes a thing rather than a mind.
| He changed his mind at the last minute. | Han ändrade sig i sista minuten. |
All of these take the reflexive pronoun that matches the subject: jag befinner mig, du befinner dig, han befinner sig.
