Talking about time in Norwegian involves learning some key vocabulary, common phrases, and the structure for expressing hours, minutes, parts of the day, days, and even seasons. Here’s a detailed guide:
1. Basic Vocabulary for Time
- tid — time
- klokke — clock or time (as in “o’clock”)
- minutt — minute
- sekund — second
- time — hour (or sometimes, lesson/class)
- dag — day
- uke — week
- måned — month
- år — year
2. Telling the Hour
- To ask the time, you can say:
- Hva er klokka? — What time is it?
- Hvor mye er klokka? — How much is the time?
- To answer, say Klokka er (The time is…) and then the hour.
- Klokka er ett. — It’s one o’clock.
- Klokka er to. — It’s two o’clock.
3. Telling Minutes After and To the Hour
Norwegian uses expressions for “past” and “to” the hour, similar to English.
- Minutes past the hour:
- Klokka er ti over fem. — It’s ten past five (5:10).
- Klokka er kvart over fire. — It’s a quarter past four (4:15).
- Klokka er halv seks. — It’s half past five (5:30). (In Norwegian, halv indicates the half hour before the next hour!)
- Minutes to the hour:
- Klokka er ti på tre. — It’s ten to three (2:50).
- Klokka er kvart på sju. — It’s a quarter to seven (6:45).
- Klokka er fem på halv ni. — It’s five minutes before half past eight (8:25).
4. Using 24-Hour Time
In Norway, the 24-hour clock is commonly used, especially in written contexts like schedules and transportation.
- 14:00 — Klokka er fjorten. (It’s 2:00 PM)
- 18:30 — Klokka er atten tretti. (It’s 6:30 PM)
5. Parts of the Day
- morgen — morning
- formiddag — late morning
- ettermiddag — afternoon
- kveld — evening
- natt — night
- i dag — today
- i går — yesterday
- i morgen — tomorrow
- Examples:
- Jeg kommer i morgen tidlig. — I’ll come early tomorrow.
- Vi møtes i kveld. — We’re meeting this evening.
6. Days of the Week
Norwegian days of the week are not capitalized.
- mandag — Monday
- tirsdag — Tuesday
- onsdag — Wednesday
- torsdag — Thursday
- fredag — Friday
- lørdag — Saturday
- søndag — Sunday
Examples: - Vi sees på mandag. — See you on Monday.
- Han kommer torsdag kveld. — He’s coming Thursday evening.
7. Months of the Year
- januar — January
- februar — February
- mars — March
- april — April
- mai — May
- juni — June
- juli — July
- august — August
- september — September
- oktober — October
- november — November
- desember — December
Examples: - Jeg har bursdag i mai. — My birthday is in May.
- Vi drar på ferie i juli. — We’re going on vacation in July.
8. Talking About Seasons
- vår — spring
- sommer — summer
- høst — autumn
- vinter — winter
Examples: - Jeg liker våren. — I like the spring.
- Vi reiser til fjellet om vinteren. — We travel to the mountains in winter.
9. Using Time Expressions in Sentences
- Når begynner filmen? — When does the movie start?
- Den begynner klokka sju. — It starts at seven o’clock.
- Jeg kom for to timer siden. — I came two hours ago.
- Jeg skal møte henne om ti minutter. — I’ll meet her in ten minutes.
10. Common Time Phrases
- nå — now
- senere — later
- snart — soon
- alltid — always
- aldri — never
- ofte — often
- noen ganger — sometimes
- sjelden — rarely
Examples: - Jeg må gå nå. — I have to go now.
- Vi møtes ofte. — We meet often.
- Han kommer senere. — He’ll come later.
