Sin, sit, sine or hans, hendes, deres

When the owner is he, she or it and is also the subject of the same clause, Danish uses the reflexive possessive. It agrees with the noun that is owned:

• sin + en-noun: Hun ringer til sin mor. (She calls her mother.)
• sit + et-noun: Han vasker sit hår. (He washes his hair.)
• sine + plural: Han børster sine tænder. (He brushes his teeth.)

Use hans / hendes when the owner is not the subject of that clause: Jens er syg, så hans kone passer ham. Sin can never be part of the subject itself, so it is Peter og hans kone (Peter and his wife) and Maria siger, at hendes søster er læge.

With a plural owner Danish always uses deres: Børnene leger med deres venner. This differs from Swedish sina and Norwegian sine.

Tip: Han tager hans jakke means he takes another man's jacket.