Reflexive Verbs and Pronouns

01

The Pronouns

The pronoun matches the subject. In the first and second person it is the ordinary object pronoun; the third person has its own form, seg, for he, she, it and they alike.

• jeg → meg (myself)
• du → deg (yourself)
• han, hun, den, det → seg (himself, herself, itself)
• vi → oss (ourselves)
• dere → dere (yourselves)
• de → seg (themselves)

• Jeg føler meg syk.

  I feel ill.

• Hun føler seg varm.

  She feels hot.

02

Common Reflexive Verbs

In dictionaries these verbs are listed with seg, which changes to match the subject when the verb is used.

• føle seg - to feel
• glede seg til - to look forward to
• legge seg - to go to bed
• sette seg - to sit down
• kjede seg - to be bored
• skynde seg - to hurry
• bekymre seg - to worry

• Jeg gleder meg til det.

  I am looking forward to it.

• Jeg pusser tennene før jeg legger meg.

  I brush my teeth before I go to bed.

• Jeg kjeder meg.

  I am bored.

03

Where the Pronoun Goes

The reflexive pronoun follows the verb that carries the tense. When the subject comes after that verb, the pronoun follows the subject. Before an infinitive the pronoun comes after it.

• Håper du føler deg bedre snart.

  Hope you feel better soon.

• I morgen skynder jeg meg.

  Tomorrow I'll hurry.

• Jeg begynner å bekymre meg.

  I am starting to worry.

In a clause beginning with a word like hvis (if), ikke moves in front of the verb, and the pronoun stays after it.

• Hvis du ikke skynder deg, kommer du for sent.

  If you don't hurry, you will be late.

04

Imperatives

A reflexive verb in the imperative keeps its pronoun, which matches the person or people addressed.

• Ikke bekymre deg.

  Don't worry.

• Vennligst sett dere ned.

  Please sit down (all of you).

05

selv Is Something Different

selv (myself, yourself, himself) is not a reflexive pronoun. It adds emphasis, saying that the person did something without help, and it can stand in a sentence with no reflexive verb at all.

• Jeg laget den selv.

  I made it myself.

• Hun maler huset selv.

  She is painting the house herself.