<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a while since I last talked to you about grammatikk<\/strong> (grammar). For some learners, that\u2019s just a necessary evil. I always argue that learning grammar can be just as fun as exploring the culture or learning vocabulary. Let\u2019s talk about \u00e5 v\u00e6re<\/strong> (\u201daw vare\u201d, to be).<\/p>\n One of the first Norwegian words you\u2019ll hear, is the present tense er<\/strong> (is, are, am):<\/p>\n Jeg er kjempeglad!<\/strong> (I\u2019m very happy!)<\/p>\n Hvem er du?<\/strong> (Who\u2019re you?)<\/p>\n Familien min er p\u00e5 ferie.<\/strong> (My family is on holiday.)<\/p>\n De er i Spania.<\/strong> (They\u2019re in Spain.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Easy, right? In order to make questions, you just move er<\/strong> up front:<\/p>\n Er du jenta fra USA?<\/strong> (Are you the girl from the US?)<\/p>\n Er dere ferdige?<\/strong> (Are you finished?)<\/p>\n Er han hjemme, tror du?<\/strong> (Do you think he\u2019s at home?)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Negative phrases are made by inserting the little word ikke<\/strong> right behind er<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Nei, jeg er ikke fra USA.<\/strong> (No, I\u2019m not from the US.)<\/p>\n Nei, han er ikke hjemme i dag.<\/strong> (No, he\u2019s not at home today.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When making questions, the word ikke<\/strong> stays at its place!<\/p>\n Er han ikke hjemme p\u00e5 torsdag heller?<\/strong> (Is he not at home on Thursday either?)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The past tense works in the same way. You just replace er<\/strong> by var<\/strong> (was, were)!<\/p>\n Hvor var du i g\u00e5r?<\/strong> (Where were you yesterday?)<\/p>\n Hun var ikke maler i 1997.<\/strong> (She wasn\u2019t a painter in 1997.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When you want to tell people where or what you have been<\/em>, the words to use are har v\u00e6rt<\/strong> [har VARE-t]. In the past, that\u2019s hadde v\u00e6rt<\/strong> (had been). It all works pretty much as in English:<\/p>\n P\u00e5l har v\u00e6rt sj\u00f8mann i sju \u00e5r.<\/strong> (Paul has been a sailor for seven years.)<\/p>\n De hadde aldri v\u00e6rt p\u00e5 Glittertind f\u00f8r.<\/strong> (They had never been on Mount Glittertind before.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Be careful!<\/p>\n Sarpsborg ligger i \u00d8stfold.<\/strong> (Sarpsborg is in \u00d8stfold.)<\/p>\n Jeg sitter i stua!<\/strong> (I\u2019m in the living room!)<\/p>\n Vinen st\u00e5r i skapet.<\/strong> (The wine is in the cupboard.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s been a while since I last talked to you about grammatikk (grammar). For some learners, that\u2019s just a necessary evil. I always argue that learning grammar can be just as fun as exploring the culture or learning vocabulary. Let\u2019s talk about \u00e5 v\u00e6re (\u201daw vare\u201d, to be). One of the first Norwegian words…<\/p>\nStuck in the past<\/h2>\n
Has been, had been\u2026<\/h2>\n
V\u00e6r forsiktig!<\/h2>\n
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