Pronoun Changes
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
When reporting what someone said, you must shift pronouns to match the reporter's perspective, not the original speaker's.
- Change 'jag' to 'han/hon' if reporting someone else (e.g., Han sa att han var trött).
- Shift 'vi' to 'de' when reporting a group you aren't in (e.g., De sa att de kom).
- Use 'sin/sitt/sina' for possessives referring back to the new subject (e.g., Hon sa att det var hennes/sin bok).
Meanings
The process of adjusting personal, possessive, and reflexive pronouns when converting direct speech into indirect (reported) speech to maintain logical consistency from the reporter's point of view.
Subjective Shift
Changing the subject pronoun (I/You/We) to match the person being talked about.
“Hon sa att hon var hungrig.”
“De berättade att de hade vunnit.”
Possessive Alignment
Adjusting 'my/your/our' to 'his/her/their' or the reflexive 'sin/sitt/sina'.
“Lars sa att hans bil var trasig.”
“Maja sa att hon letade efter sin nyckel.”
Passive Reporting Shift
Adjusting pronouns when the reporting verb is passive (e.g., 'It is said that...').
“Det sägs att han har flyttat.”
“Det påstås att de har fuskat.”
Pronoun Mapping: Direct to Indirect
| Direct Speech (Speaker says...) | Indirect Speech (You report...) | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Jag (I) | Han / Hon (He / She) | Han sa att han... |
| Vi (We) | De (They) | De sa att de... |
| Du (You) | Jag / Honom / Henne | Hon frågade om jag... |
| Min / Mitt / Mina | Sin / Sitt / Sina (Reflexive) | Hon tog sin väska. |
| Min / Mitt / Mina | Hans / Hennes / Deras (Non-reflexive) | Jag tog hans väska. |
| Mig (Me) | Sig / Honom / Henne | Han tvättade sig. |
| Oss (Us) | Dem (Them) | De bad oss hjälpa dem. |
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative | Subject + sa att + New Pronoun + Verb | Hon sa att hon var klar. |
| Negative | Subject + sa att + New Pronoun + inte + Verb | Han sa att han inte kom. |
| Question (Yes/No) | Subject + frågade om + New Pronoun + Verb | De frågade om vi var hemma. |
| Question (Wh-) | Subject + frågade + Wh-word + New Pronoun + Verb | Hon frågade var jag bodde. |
| Passive Report | Det sägs att + New Pronoun + Verb | Det sägs att de har gift sig. |
| Possessive (Own) | Subject + Verb + sin/sitt/sina | Kalle sa att han sålde sin bil. |
| Possessive (Other) | Subject + Verb + hans/hennes/deras | Kalle sa att han sålde hans bil (Olles). |
격식 수준 스펙트럼
Han meddelade att han avsåg att anlända. (Reporting arrival)
Han sa att han skulle komma. (Reporting arrival)
Han sa att han kommer. (Reporting arrival)
Han ba 'jag kommer'. (Reporting arrival)
The Reporting Perspective Shift
Subject Shift
- Jag → Han/Hon I → He/She
- Vi → De We → They
Possessive Shift
- Min → Sin/Hans My → His (own)/His
- Vår → Deras Our → Their
Direct vs. Indirect Pronouns
Choosing the Right Possessive
Does the object belong to the subject?
Examples by Level
Han säger att han är trött.
He says that he is tired.
Hon sa att hon kommer imorgon.
She said that she is coming tomorrow.
De säger att de är hungriga.
They say that they are hungry.
Mamma sa att hon älskar mig.
Mom said that she loves me.
Han sa att hans bil är röd.
He said that his car is red.
Vi sa att vi inte kunde komma.
We said that we couldn't come.
Hon frågade om jag ville ha kaffe.
She asked if I wanted coffee.
De berättade att deras hus är gammalt.
They told (us) that their house is old.
Anders sa att han hade glömt sin nyckel.
Anders said that he had forgotten his (own) key.
Det sägs att hon ska sluta sitt jobb.
It is said that she is going to quit her job.
Lärarna sa att de var nöjda med oss.
The teachers said they were happy with us.
Hon påstod att hon inte kände honom.
She claimed that she didn't know him.
Vittnet uppgav att han sett henne på platsen.
The witness stated that he had seen her at the scene.
De frågade mig om jag hade sett deras hund.
They asked me if I had seen their dog.
Det rapporterades att man inte funnit några spår.
It was reported that no tracks had been found.
Han sa att han skulle göra det själv.
He said that he would do it himself.
Regeringen lät meddela att man avsåg att revidera sin politik.
The government announced that it intended to revise its policy.
Han sades ha förlorat allt han ägde.
He was said to have lost everything he owned.
Hon undrade huruvida de verkligen hade förstått henne.
She wondered whether they had really understood her.
Det antas att de boende har evakuerat sina hem.
It is assumed that the residents have evacuated their homes.
I protokollet anfördes att vederbörande ej vidkänts sin skuld.
In the minutes it was stated that the person in question had not acknowledged their debt.
Det föresvävade henne att de kanske dolde något för henne.
It occurred to her that they might be hiding something from her.
Man torde kunna utgå ifrån att de inblandade är medvetna om sitt ansvar.
One should be able to assume that those involved are aware of their responsibility.
Ryktena gjorde gällande att han låtit bygga huset åt sig själv.
The rumors asserted that he had had the house built for himself.
Easily Confused
Learners often use 'hans' when they should use 'sin' because their native language doesn't distinguish between the two.
Using 'att' for questions or 'om' for statements.
In reported speech, the subject/object distinction is vital for pronoun shifts.
자주 하는 실수
Han sa att jag är glad.
Han sa att han är glad.
Hon säger jag kommer.
Hon säger att hon kommer.
De sa vi är här.
De sa att de är här.
Jag sa han är trött.
Jag sa att han var trött.
Han sa att det är min bok.
Han sa att det är hans bok.
Hon sa att hon tvättar henne.
Hon sa att hon tvättar sig.
De sa att deras är här.
De sa att de är här.
Erik sa att han tog hans väska.
Erik sa att han tog sin väska.
Hon frågade om du kunde hjälpa henne.
Hon frågade om jag kunde hjälpa henne.
Det sägs att de har glömt hans nycklar.
Det sägs att de har glömt sina nycklar.
Sentence Patterns
___ sa att ___ skulle ___.
Det sägs att ___ har ___ sin ___.
Hon frågade om ___ kunde hjälpa ___.
De påstod att ___ inte kände ___.
Real World Usage
Han sa att han e på väg.
Min tidigare chef sa att jag var mycket punktlig.
Polisen uppger att de har gripit en misstänkt.
Hon sa att hon inte tål gluten.
Har du hört att hon ska lämna sin man?
Läkaren sa att jag måste ta min medicin varje dag.
The 'Own' Test
Don't drop 'att'
Check the Subject
The 'Ba' Factor
Smart Tips
Immediately point to the person who said it. If it's a man, use 'han'. If it's a woman, use 'hon'.
Ask yourself: 'Is it HIS own?' If yes, use 'sin'.
Keep 'vi' as 'vi'. Don't shift to 'de' if you are still part of the group!
Remember the pronoun comes BEFORE 'inte'.
발음
Reduction of 'att'
In spoken Swedish, 'att' is often reduced to a short 'å' sound or skipped entirely in very fast speech.
Stress on 'sin'
When using 'sin/sitt/sina', the stress is usually on the following noun, unless you are emphasizing that it is specifically *their own*.
Reporting Clause Drop
Han sa att han var KLAR. ↘
The pitch usually drops at the end of the reported clause.
Memorize It
Mnemonic
The Mirror Rule: In reported speech, the pronoun looks in the mirror and sees the person who originally spoke.
Visual Association
Imagine a puppet show. The puppet says 'I', but the puppeteer (you) points at the puppet and says 'He'.
Rhyme
When 'Jag' is what they say, 'Han' or 'Hon' is the way!
Story
Lasse told a secret: 'Jag har min guldklocka här.' When I told the police, I had to say: 'Lasse sa att han hade sin guldklocka där.' If I said 'min', the police would search me!
Word Web
챌린지
Listen to a Swedish podcast for 5 minutes. Every time you hear 'sa att', write down the pronoun that follows and try to guess what the original 'Direct Speech' pronoun was.
문화 노트
In Sweden, reporting what someone said about their own achievements often involves softening the pronouns or using 'man' to sound less boastful.
In older Stockholm slang, 'ba' (bara) is used as a universal reporting marker instead of 'sa att', often followed by direct pronouns.
Swedish authorities use 'vederbörande' (the person in question) in reports to avoid gendered pronouns or to remain objective.
Swedish pronoun shifts evolved from Old Norse, which already had a strong distinction between reflexive and non-reflexive possessives.
Conversation Starters
Vad sa din lärare till dig igår?
Berätta om ett rykte du har hört nyligen.
Vad sa din bästa vän om sin senaste semester?
Om du fick rapportera ett viktigt nyhetsinslag, vad skulle du säga?
Journal Prompts
Test Yourself
Olle sa: 'Jag är hungrig.' -> Olle sa att ___ var hungrig.
Maria sa att hon hade glömt ___ (her own) nycklar.
Find and fix the mistake:
De sa att vi skulle komma till festen. (Context: They were talking about themselves).
Lars: 'Min fru är sjuk.'
Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:
A: Vad sa chefen? B: Han sa att ___ var nöjd med ___ arbete.
In Swedish reported speech, 'jag' always stays 'jag'.
sin, hans, sina, hennes, sitt, deras
Score: /8
연습 문제
8 exercisesOlle sa: 'Jag är hungrig.' -> Olle sa att ___ var hungrig.
Maria sa att hon hade glömt ___ (her own) nycklar.
Find and fix the mistake:
De sa att vi skulle komma till festen. (Context: They were talking about themselves).
Lars: 'Min fru är sjuk.'
1. Jag, 2. Vi, 3. Min, 4. Mig
A: Vad sa chefen? B: Han sa att ___ var nöjd med ___ arbete.
In Swedish reported speech, 'jag' always stays 'jag'.
sin, hans, sina, hennes, sitt, deras
Score: /8
자주 묻는 질문 (8)
Use `sin` when the object belongs to the subject of the same clause. Use `hans` when it belongs to someone else.
Yes, only if you are reporting your own words. `Jag sa att jag var trött.`
It usually shifts to `jag` (if the speaker was talking to you) or `honom/henne` (if they were talking to someone else).
In formal writing, yes. In casual speech, it is often dropped or shortened to `å`.
Use `frågade om` (asked if) for yes/no questions and shift the pronouns accordingly.
It's using phrases like `Det sägs att...` (It is said that...). Pronouns still shift to match the person being discussed.
Yes! Reported speech is a subordinate clause, so the word order follows the `BIFF-rule` (In subordinate clauses, 'inte' comes before the verb).
Without it, you will confuse people about who is doing what. It's the key to clear communication in Swedish.
In Other Languages
He said that he...
English doesn't have a specific reflexive possessive like 'sin'.
Er sagte, dass er...
German uses mood shifts (subjunctive) more than Swedish does.
Dijo que...
Spanish is a pro-drop language; Swedish requires the pronoun.
Il a dit qu'il...
French possessive gender agreement vs. Swedish reflexive logic.
〜と言いました (~to iimashita)
Context and honorifics replace explicit pronoun shifting.
قال إنه... (Qala innahu...)
Pronouns are suffixes in Arabic, not independent words.
他说他... (Tā shuō tā...)
Chinese lacks case and gender markers in spoken pronouns (tā is the same for he/she).
