The Infinitive and the Marker å | Norwegian Grammar

The infinitive is the base form of the verb — the one you look up in a dictionary, and the one that follows the little word å ("to"), exactly as English verbs follow "to": å spise = "to eat". This page covers what the infinitive looks like, when the marker å is present, and the one situation where it disappears: after a modal verb. It also draws the line between å ("to") and its identical-sounding twin og ("and") — a pair so confusing that native Norwegians get it wrong constantly.

What the infinitive looks like

Most Norwegian infinitives end in -e. A smaller set ends in a stressed vowel instead, because the stem itself is that vowel.

Infinitive	Meaning	Type
å spise	to eat	-e ending
å kaste	to throw	-e ending
å lese	to read	-e ending
å gå	to go / walk	vowel stem
å bo	to live (reside)	vowel stem
å se	to see	vowel stem

The -e infinitive is the default — when you meet a new verb, expect -e. The vowel-stem verbs (gå, bo, se, ta, dra, bli, få, stå…) are few but extremely common, so you'll learn them by heart almost immediately.

Det er sunt å spise grønnsaker.

It's healthy to eat vegetables.

Jeg lærer å bo alene.

I'm learning to live on my own.

The marker å: Norwegian's "to"

In most contexts the infinitive is introduced by å, which lines up almost perfectly with English "to". If your English sentence has "to + verb", Norwegian very likely has å + infinitive.

Jeg liker å lese om kvelden.

I like to read in the evening.

Det er gøy å svømme i sjøen.

It's fun to swim in the sea.

Hun begynte å gråte.

She started to cry.

Det er vanskelig å forstå dialekten hans.

It's hard to understand his dialect.

This parallel with English is a real gift: where you'd say "to read", "to swim", "to understand", you reach for å plus the dictionary form. Use that English-"to" instinct as your default guide.

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Quick test: if you can say "to " in English, Norwegian almost always wants å . *I like to read* → *Jeg liker å lese*. This one heuristic gets you the marker right the vast majority of the time.

There is one big situation where å disappears: after a modal verb. The modals are kan (can), vil (will/want), skal (shall/will), må (must), bør (should/ought), and får in some uses. After these, the following verb is a bare infinitive — no å.

Modal	bare infinitive	English
Jeg kan	svømme.	I can swim.
Han vil	komme.	He wants to come.
Vi må	dra nå.	We have to leave now.
Du bør	hvile.	You ought to rest.

Jeg kan svømme hundre meter.

I can swim a hundred metres.

Han vil komme på besøk i helga.

He wants to come and visit this weekend.

Vi må gå nå, ellers rekker vi ikke bussen.

We have to go now, or we'll miss the bus.

Here English is actually on your side. English does the same thing: you say "I can swim", never "I can to swim"; "He must leave", never "He must to leave". English modals (can, will, shall, must, should) take a bare infinitive too. So the modal rule isn't a new burden — it's the same instinct you already have. The mismatch is only with verbs like want, where English keeps "to" (want to come) but the Norwegian modal vil does not (vil komme).

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The reliable signal: a modal (kan, vil, skal, må, bør) is always followed by a bare infinitive — never insert å after one. Outside of modals, the default is å + infinitive.

å versus og: the twin that trips up natives

å ("to", the infinitive marker) and og ("and", a conjunction) are pronounced identically in most of Norway — both sound roughly like "aw". You cannot tell them apart by ear; you have to know which meaning you need. This is the single most common spelling mistake Norwegians themselves make, on signs, in emails, everywhere.

The good news for English speakers: you have a built-in test that native speakers don't think to use. Translate into English.

If the English word is "to" → write å (it introduces an infinitive): Jeg liker *å lese* = "I like to read".
If the English word is "and" → write og (it joins two equal things): å spise *og drikke = "to eat *and drink".

Norwegian	Which word	English test
Jeg liker å lese.	å ("to")	"I like to read."
Jeg liker å lese og skrive.	og ("and")	"…to read and write."
Det er godt å spise og drikke.	both	"…to eat and drink."

Jeg liker å lese.

I like to read. (å = 'to')

Det er godt å spise og å drikke.

It's good to eat and to drink. (å = 'to', og = 'and')

Hun pleier å sykle til jobben og ta bussen hjem.

She usually cycles to work and takes the bus home. (å = 'to', og = 'and')

Notice in the last example that after og the second verb (ta) appears as a bare infinitive — because og simply joins it to the first infinitive sykle, which was already governed by pleier å. The å isn't repeated after og there; that's a stylistic choice (you may repeat it, as in å spise og å drikke, but you needn't).

Common Mistakes

❌ Jeg kan å svømme.

Incorrect — å inserted after a modal verb.

✅ Jeg kan svømme.

I can swim.

After a modal (kan, vil, skal, må, bør) the infinitive is bare — no å. Remember the English parallel: you'd never say "I can to swim" either.

❌ Han vil å komme i morgen.

Incorrect — modal vil cannot take å.

✅ Han vil komme i morgen.

He wants to come tomorrow.

This one feels wrong to English speakers precisely because English keeps "to" here ("wants to come"). But vil is a modal, so the following verb is bare: vil komme.

❌ Jeg liker og lese.

Incorrect — og ('and') used where å ('to') is needed.

✅ Jeg liker å lese.

I like to read.

The English is "I like to read", not "I like and read", so the word is å. This is the famous swap; the English-translation test catches it every time.

❌ Det er godt å spise å drikke.

Incorrect — å ('to') used where og ('and') joins the two verbs.

✅ Det er godt å spise og drikke.

It's good to eat and drink.

Here the link between spise and drikke is "and", so it must be og. The mirror image of the previous error.

❌ Jeg håper se deg snart.

Incorrect — missing å before a non-modal infinitive.

✅ Jeg håper å se deg snart.

I hope to see you soon.

Håpe ("to hope") is not a modal, so its infinitive complement needs the marker: håper *å se*. Outside of modals, default to å + infinitive.

Key Takeaways

The infinitive is the dictionary form: mostly -e (å spise), sometimes a stressed vowel (å gå).
The marker å ("to") introduces the infinitive — and it lines up with English "to", so use that as your default test.
Modal verbs (kan, vil, skal, må, bør) take a bare infinitive with no å — exactly as English modals do ("I can swim").
å ("to") and og ("and") sound the same; choose by translating into English: "to" → å, "and" → og.
This English test is an advantage native speakers don't have — use it to beat the most common spelling error in Norwegian.

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