Hangman

Play hangman in Norwegian online on the no.free.dictionary homepage, or here in English, Norwegian, or French at hangman.no.

Å bo = To live, reside (Uke 30)

Kroken Leilighet, Bergen.

The Verb of the Week for Week 30 is å bo, "to live, reside". Å bu is still seen, but the newer spelling is more common nowadays.

Use å leve for "to live, be alive" -- "Man kan ikke leve av brød alene".

hun bor = she lives (present tense)
hun har bodd = she has lived (present perfect tense)
hun bodde = she lived (past tense)
hun hadde bodd = she had lived (past perfect tense)
hun vil bo/bu = she will live (future)
hun vil ha bodd = she will have lived (future perfect)
hun ville bo/bu = she would live (present conditional)
hun ville ha bodd = she would have lived (perfect conditional)

Hvor lenge har du bodd i denne leiligheten?
How long have you lived in this flat?

Øyvind bor i Trondheim nå, men han er egentlig fra Kolvereid.
Øyvind lives in Trondheim now, but actually he's from Kolvereid.

Mor sier jeg ville bo på biblioteket hvis jeg kunne.
Mum says I'd live at the public library if I could.

Litt/lite = A little/little

Liten and litt both refer to the smallness of something, but when you are talking about how much Norwegian you speak, there is a subtle difference.

Jeg snakker litt norsk.
I speak a little Norwegian.

Jeg snakker lite norsk.
I speak little Norwegian.

The first implies, "yes, I speak [a bit of] Norwegian, please feel free to carry on", while the second is "I don't understand, please help!"

Jeg snakker bare litt norsk.
I speak only a little Norwegian.

Vennligst snakk saktere.
Please speak more slowly.

Hva betyr det?
What does that mean?

Å ta = To take (Uken 29)

Å ta, "to take", is the Verb of the Week for week 29. It is an irregular verb, and usually has a direct object, that which is taken.

jeg tar = I take (present tense)
jeg har tatt = I have taken (present perfect tense)
jeg tok = I took (past tense)
jeg hadde tatt = I had taken (past perfect)
jeg vil ta = I will take (future)
jeg vil ha ta = I will have taken (future perfect)
jeg ville ta = I would take (present conditional)
jeg ville ha ta = I would have taken (perfect conditional)

ta medisin sin = take one's medicine
ta en liten hvilepause = take a little break
ta en foto/bild = take a photo/picture

Here are some sentences using å ta --

Kjell har tatt den siste pakken med potetgull til sin lunsj.
Kjell has taken the last packet of crisps for his lunch.

Vel å merke, jeg trodde ikke at han skulle ta meg på alvor.
Mind you, I didn’t think he would take me seriously.

En ny fordeler? Hvor lenge vil det ta?
A new distributor? How long will it take?

Kom, så tar vi en kopp kaffe!
Come, let’s have a cup of coffee!

"I hildringstimen"

"I hildringstimen"
musikk av Finn Ludt, tekst av Erik Bye
sunget av Erik Bye

I hildringstimen er det godt å seile
En kaffekjeft og stomp med sirup på
Du åpner med et smell ditt rorhusvindu
Og stikker nesa ut og snuser mot det blå.

Ja, se den gamle gullsmed, morgensolen
Har atter hamret havet til et fat
Der skaperen med ødselhet har drysset
En håndfull holmer som nå bader i karat.

Og se mot styrbord gjennom hildringsdisen
De fjerne øyer svever! Fjell kan fly!
Nå aner du hva salig Adam skuet
Da han ble purret ved det aller første gry.

I slikt et lys, da blir alt mørkt et minne
Du hviler hånden rolig på ditt ratt
Og gnukker tommelen mot midskipsmerket
Og vet for denne gang, din kurs var riktig satt.

Du møter kuttere på vei mot feltet
Et solbrent fjes, som spytter brunt i le
En fiskerneve hilser fra et rorhus
Og gjør din glade hjemreis dobbelt rik ved det.

For ennå er din skute langt av lande
Men aldri var deg mennesket mer nært
Enn nettopp nå, i denne gyldne time
Som lar deg fatte alt du har å holde kjært.

I hildringstimen er det godt å seile
Og favne lys til kraft for blod og ben
Og vite at, i netter som skal komme
Så fins en kurs i mot et land av sang og sten.

Å gi = To give (Uke 28)

Socks from Colorful Stitches.

The Verb of the Week is å gi, "to give". It can have either an indirect object (the recipient) or a direct object (that which is given).

Ga is the more common past tense of this verb today, but the older form, gav, is still to be found.

Here are some conjugations of this irregular verb:

han gir = he gives (present tense)
han har gitt = he has given (present perfect tense)
han ga = he gave (past tense)
han hadde gitt = he had given (past perfect)
han skal gi = he shall give (future)
han skal ha gitt = he shall have given (future perfect)
han skulle gi = he should give (present conditional)
han skulle ha gitt = he should have given (perfect conditional)

Here are some idiomatic uses of this verb:

Hva gir du meg! = How do you like that!
gi mening = give/make sense
å gi kort = to deal cards
gi etter = give in
gi fra seg = give up, hand over
gi ut = publish, make known
gi videre = pass on
gi seg tid = take one's time
gi seg i vei = start off, set out

And here are some sentences using å gi --

Se hva Martin har gitt meg!
Look at what Martin has given me!

Hos Annike gir de gaver både til Hanukka og til jul.
At Annike's house, they give gifts at Hanukkah as well as Christmas.

Jeg ville ikke gi fem øre for det.
I wouldn't give you five cents for it.

Jeg strikket noen varme sokker til Terje, men han ville ikke gå med dem. Utakknemlige unge! Så jeg ga dem til broren min.
I knitted some warm socks for Terje, but he would not wear them. Ungrateful boy! So I gave them to my brother.

Å selge = To sell (Uke 27)

Kild: Storm.no

Å selge, "to sell", is the Verb of the Week for Week 27. It usually has a direct object, that which is being sold -- selge bøker, solgte bilen hans.

Here are the conjugations of this irregular verb:

han selger = he sells (present tense)
han har solgt = he has sold (present perfect tense)
han solgte = he sold (past tense)
han vil selge = he will sell (future)
han vil ha solgt = he will have sold (future perfect)
han hadde solgt = he had sold (past perfect)
han ville selge = he would sell (present conditional)
han ville ha solgt = he would have sold (perfect conditional)

Se mannen som selger iskrem der borte? Her, gå og få noe.
See that man selling ices over there? Here, go and get some.

Du kunne sannsynligvis selge de fleste av disse greiene på eBay, vet du.
You could probably sell most of this stuff on eBay, you know.

Med lykken min, har de allerede solgt den siste.
With my luck, they've already sold the last one.

"Ja, vi elsker dette landet"

The words to the Norwegian national anthem were written by poet Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson in 1859, and the tune by his cousin, the composer Rikard Nordraak, a few years later. It was first performed on Constitution Day in 1864. The verses below are the ones most commonly sung, 1, 7, and 8; the spelling has been modernised from the Dano-Norwegian of Bjørnson's day.

Ja, vi elsker dette landet,
som det stiger frem,
furet, værbitt over vannet,
med de tusen hjem.
Elsker, elsker det og tenker
på vår far og mor
og den saganatt som senker
drømmer på vår jord.
og den saganatt som senker,
senker drømmer på vår jord.

Norske mann i hus og hytte,
takk din store Gud!
Landet ville han beskytte,
skjønt det mørkt så ut.
Alt hva fedrene har kjempet,
mødrene har grett,
har den Herre stille lempet
så vi vant, vi vant vår rett.

Ja, vi elsker dette landet,
som det stiger frem,
furet, værbitt over vannet,
med de tusen hjem.
Og som fedres kamp har hevet
det av nød til seir,
også vi, når det blir krevet,
for dets fred, dets fred slår leir.

Yes, we love this country
as it rises forth,
rugged, weathered, above the sea,
with the thousands of homes.
Love, love it and think
of our father and mother
and the saga night that sends
dreams to our earth.
and the saga night that sends,
sends dreams to our earth.

Norseman in house and cabin,
thank your great God!
The country he wanted to protect,
although things looked dark.
All the fights fathers have fought,
and the mothers have wept,
the Lord has quietly moved,
so we won our rights.

Yes, we love this country
as it rises forth,
rugged, weathered, above the sea,
with those thousand homes.
And as the fathers' struggle has raised
it from need to victory,
even we, when it is demanded,
for its peace will encamp.

A lovely a capella version by the Norsk Solistkor can be seen and heard here at YouTube, and a men's-chorus version by Den norske Studentersangforening directed by Thomas Caplin, with a copy of the poem in its original spelling here at "Bjørnson for vår tid" from Nasjonalbiblioteket.

And here is a version of the public-domain arrangement, from the Norwegian Society of Texas: