Verbs: Present Tense

01

One Form for Every Person

• jeg spiser - I eat
• du spiser - you eat
• han spiser, hun spiser - he eats, she eats
• vi spiser - we eat
• dere spiser - you (plural) eat
• de spiser - they eat

Because the verb itself never shows who is acting, a Norwegian sentence always names the subject, even when it is only a short pronoun.

• Vi spiser lunsj.

  We are having lunch.

• Mannen spiser et eple.

  The man is eating an apple.

02

Forming It: Add -r

Start from the infinitive, the form a dictionary lists, and add -r. Most infinitives end in -e, so most present forms end in -er.

• snakke → snakker (speak)
• jobbe → jobber (work)
• lese → leser (read)
• kjøpe → kjøper (buy)

A group of short, everyday verbs ends in a stressed vowel instead of -e. They take the -r directly.

• bo → bor (live)
• gå → går (go, walk)
• se → ser (see)
• ha → har (have)
• ta → tar (take)

• Jeg bor i en landsby.

  I live in a village.

• Hun leser en bok.

  She is reading a book.

• Han tar bussen.

  He takes the bus.

03

The Irregular Few

Only a handful of verbs break the pattern, but they are among the most frequent words in the language and are worth learning as fixed pairs.

• være → er (be)
• gjøre → gjør (do, make)
• vite → vet (know)
• si → sier (say)
• spørre → spør (ask)

The modal verbs, which add meanings like "can" and "must" to another verb, have short present forms without -r: kan, må, vil, skal, bør.

• Hva gjør dere nå?

  What are you doing now?

• Hun vet at jeg er syk.

  She knows that I am ill.

• Legen sier at jeg må hvile.

  The doctor says that I have to rest.

04

Two Verbs You Need Constantly: er and har

er (is, am, are) and har (has, have) carry a large share of everyday sentences. har also appears in the standard question about how somebody is doing, which literally asks how you "have it".

• Jeg er student.

  I am a student.

• Vi har en hund og en katt.

  We have a dog and a cat.

• Hvordan har du det?

  How are you?

• Jeg har det bra.

  I am fine.

05

No Separate "-ing" Form

English separates "I eat" from "I am eating". Norwegian has a single present tense for both, and the situation or a time word makes the meaning clear.

• Jeg spiser nå.

  I am eating now.

• Jeg spiser ikke ofte.

  I don't eat often.

• Han klipper alltid håret mitt.

  He always cuts my hair.

Nor does Norwegian need a helper like "do" for questions and negatives. A question puts the verb first, and ikke (not) follows the verb.

• Liker du kaffe?

  Do you like coffee?

• Jeg liker ikke kaffe.

  I don't like coffee.

06

The Present Tense About the Future

With a word that points ahead, the present tense refers to the future. This is the ordinary way to talk about plans that are already settled.

• Kommer du tilbake i morgen?

  Are you coming back tomorrow?

• Jeg sender deg et postkort når jeg ankommer.

  I will send you a postcard when I arrive.

07

Verbs Ending in -s

A few verbs end in -s already in the infinitive. They add nothing in the present, so the infinitive and the present tense look the same.

• Jeg synes du er morsom.

  I think you are funny.

• Det finnes mange jobber.

  There are many jobs.