his coat on the tree;' Kjolen hang på Træet, 'The coat was hanging on the tree.'
Many intransitive verbs acquire a transitive character by a mere "umlaut," or change of the vowel; as,
| at falde, | to fall; | at fælle, | to fell. |
| ... fare, | ... drive; | ... före, | ... lead. |
| ... knage, | ... creak; | ... knikke, | ... crack. |
| ... ligge, | ... lie; | ... lægge, | ... lay. |
| ... ryge, | ... smoke; | ... röge, | ... to cure by smoking |
| ... sidde, | ... sit; | ... sætte, | ... set. |
| ... springe, | ... spring; | ... sprænge, | ... burst. |
| ... våge, | ... watch; | ... vække, | ... awaken, be awake. |
Deponent verbs are declined in all their simple tenses like passives, viz., by adding s or es to the corresponding tenses of the active form. In their compound tenses they employ the active auxiliary at have. Their supine is formed by the addition of t or ts; but, for the sake of euphony, this rule is frequently disregarded, and des or edes is employed for the older and more correct form; as, instead of writing Det har lykkets mig, 'I have succeeded,' we find Det er lykket mig, or Det lykkedes mig.
Verbs having a reciprocative sense assume the passive form when used simply with the subject-noun, or pronoun; as, de ses, 'they see each other;' Hans og Jens slås, 'Hans (John) and Jens are fighting.' De slå hinanden, and de slås, convey different meanings; the former signifying 'they are beating each other,' while the latter implies the more forcible act of fighting.
