Breakdown of Barnet säger emot sin mamma.
barnet
the child
mamman
the mother
sin
his/her/its/their own (en-word)
säga emot
to contradict
Questions & Answers about Barnet säger emot sin mamma.
Why does the sentence use säger emot to mean contradicts?
Säger emot is a phrasal verb that literally means says against. In Swedish, this is the most natural way to express that someone talks back to or contradicts someone else.
Why do we use sin here instead of hans, hennes, or dess?
Sin is a reflexive possessive pronoun used when the subject of the sentence owns the object. Because barnet (the child) is contradicting their own mother, we use sin. If you used a word like hans or hennes, it would mean the child is contradicting a different person's mother.
Barnet is an ett-word. Why doesn't the sentence use sitt mamma?
The choice between sin, sitt, and sina depends entirely on the word being owned, not the owner. Because mamma is an en-word, we use sin, even though the owner (barnet) is an ett-word.
How should I emphasize the words in säger emot when speaking?
In Swedish phrasal verbs, the stress always falls on the second word, which is called the particle. This means you should put the emphasis on emot rather than säger when speaking this sentence aloud.
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