A subordinate clause is a clause that cannot stand on its own — it is glued to a main clause by a subordinator (at "that", fordi "because", hvis "if", om "whether/if", når "when", da "when (past)", som "who/which", mens "while", selv om "even though"). The single most important thing to know about these clauses is that they obey a different word order from main clauses. The V2 rule that governs main clauses — finite verb in second position, subject and verb swapping when something is fronted — is switched off. Instead, the subordinate clause keeps a rigid Subject – Adverb – Verb order, and the place where this bites hardest is the position of ikke and the other sentence adverbs: they move to before the finite verb. English keeps the same order in main and subordinate clauses, so this split is invisible to English speakers until someone points it out — and getting it right is widely regarded as the dividing line between an intermediate and an advanced learner.
The core rule: Subject – Adverb – Verb, nothing inverts
In a main clause, the verb is locked in second position and a fronted element forces inversion. None of that happens after a subordinator. The subordinate clause opens with its subject, and the finite verb stays put behind any sentence adverb. The clearest way to feel it is to watch the same verb-and-adverb pair flip places depending on the clause type.
| Main clause (V2) | Subordinate clause (S–Adv–V) |
|---|---|
| Han kommer ikke. | …at han ikke kommer. |
| Hun jobber alltid. | …fordi hun alltid jobber. |
| Vi har aldri vært der. | …som vi aldri har vært på. |
Jeg vet at han ikke kommer.
I know that he isn't coming.
Hun sier at hun ikke liker fisk.
She says that she doesn't like fish.
Jeg drar fordi hun alltid jobber.
I'm leaving because she's always working.
In every subordinate clause above, the order is subject (han, hun), then the sentence adverb (ikke, alltid), then the finite verb (kommer, liker, jobber). Read literally it is "…that he not comes," "…because she always works." Memorise the order as S–Adv–V, and remember its nickname in Norwegian schools: the BISKO/setningsadverbial rule — the sentence adverb climbs in front of the verb.
Why the order changes — the verb-second rule is suspended
There is real logic here, not just an arbitrary exception. The V2 rule exists to mark a clause as a main, assertive clause — a statement you are putting forward as your own. A subordinate clause is not an independent assertion; it is embedded inside another sentence, doing a job for it (naming a reason, a condition, a fact). So Norwegian withholds the V2 "main-clause" packaging. The subordinator already announces "what follows is a dependent clause," and with V2 switched off, the verb sinks back behind the sentence adverbs into its underlying position.
This also explains why the subordinate order feels "older" or more basic: it is the order before the verb gets pulled up to second position. The main clause is the marked, reshuffled version; the subordinate clause shows you the skeleton underneath.
Det er rart at hun aldri ringer.
It's strange that she never calls.
Han ble sur fordi jeg ikke svarte.
He got annoyed because I didn't answer.
Nothing is fronted inside a subordinate clause
Because there is no V2, there is also no inversion to trigger. You cannot front a time word or an object inside a subordinate clause the way you can in a main clause. The subject comes first, full stop. Compare:
I morgen drar jeg.
Tomorrow I'm leaving. (main clause — fronting + inversion)
Hun sa at hun drar i morgen.
She said she's leaving tomorrow. (subordinate — time word stays at the end, no fronting)
In the main clause you may lift i morgen to the front and invert. Inside the at-clause, i morgen simply stays in its normal late position and the subject hun keeps the front seat. There is nowhere to front to and nothing to invert.
The comma and the fronted-subordinate-clause twist
When the subordinate clause comes after the main clause, modern Norwegian usually writes no comma before it: Jeg blir hjemme hvis det regner. When the subordinate clause comes first, you do put a comma after it — and here is the twist that catches everyone. The fronted subordinate clause counts as one single constituent in the front slot of the main clause. So the main clause that follows must still obey V2: it begins with its finite verb, right after the comma. The subordinate clause's own internal order stays S–Adv–V, but the main clause inverts around it.
| Slot 1 (fronted subordinate clause) | Finite verb | Subject | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hvis du ikke vil, | drar | vi. | |
| Når jeg er ferdig, | ringer | jeg | deg. |
| Fordi det regnet, | ble | vi | hjemme. |
Hvis du ikke vil, drar vi.
If you don't want to, we'll leave.
Når jeg er ferdig, ringer jeg deg.
When I'm done, I'll call you.
Selv om det regner, går vi tur.
Even though it's raining, we're going for a walk.
Look at Hvis du ikke vil, drar vi. Two rules fire at once. Inside the fronted clause, ikke sits before the verb (ikke vil) — subordinate order. After the comma, the main clause inverts: verb drar first, subject vi second — because the whole hvis-clause filled the front slot. The rhythm to memorise is "comma, then verb": after a fronted subordinate clause, the next word is the main verb, not the subject.
A few more subordinators in action
The rule is identical no matter which subordinator opens the clause — som, mens, om, da, enda all behave the same way.
Jeg kjenner en mann som ikke spiser kjøtt.
I know a man who doesn't eat meat.
Hun leste mens barna sov.
She read while the children slept.
Jeg vet ikke om han kommer.
I don't know whether he's coming.
In som ikke spiser kjøtt, the relative pronoun som is the subordinator and stands in for the subject, so ikke lands right after it and before spiser. The pattern never varies: subordinator, subject (or som doing subject duty), then adverb before verb.
Common Mistakes
❌ Jeg vet at han kommer ikke.
Incorrect — main-clause order inside a subordinate clause; ikke must precede the verb.
✅ Jeg vet at han ikke kommer.
I know that he isn't coming.
This is the error this page exists to fix. English keeps "he isn't coming" identical whether it stands alone or sits after "I know that," so learners copy the main-clause order into the at-clause. In Norwegian the subordinate clause demands ikke before kommer.
❌ Hun sa at hun liker ikke fisk.
Incorrect — ikke after the verb inside an at-clause.
✅ Hun sa at hun ikke liker fisk.
She said that she doesn't like fish.
Same trap with a different verb. After at, the order is S–Adv–V: hun ikke liker, not hun liker ikke.
❌ Hvis du ikke vil, vi drar.
Incorrect — the main clause after a fronted subordinate clause fails to invert.
✅ Hvis du ikke vil, drar vi.
If you don't want to, we'll leave.
The fronted hvis-clause fills the front slot, so the main clause must start with its verb drar, not the subject vi. Remember: comma, then verb.
❌ Jeg blir hjemme fordi i morgen jobber jeg.
Incorrect — fronting and inversion attempted inside a fordi-clause.
✅ Jeg blir hjemme fordi jeg skal jobbe i morgen.
I'm staying home because I have to work tomorrow.
You cannot front i morgen and invert inside a subordinate clause — there is no V2 there. Keep the subject first and let the time word sit at the end.
❌ Han ble sur fordi svarte jeg ikke.
Incorrect — verb placed before the subject inside a fordi-clause.
✅ Han ble sur fordi jeg ikke svarte.
He got annoyed because I didn't answer.
Inside the subordinate clause the subject jeg comes first and ikke precedes the verb svarte. Nothing inverts.
Key Takeaways
- Subordinate clauses are introduced by a subordinator (at, fordi, hvis, om, når, da, som, mens, selv om…) and use Subject – Adverb – Verb order.
- V2 is switched off: nothing is fronted, nothing inverts; the subject stays first.
- The sentence adverb — above all ikke — sits before the finite verb: …at jeg *ikke kommer, never …at jeg kommer ikke*.
- A subordinate clause after the main clause normally takes no comma; a fronted subordinate clause takes a comma, and the main clause that follows still inverts ("comma, then verb").
- English keeps the same order in both clause types, which is exactly why this split is the hardest, highest-value word-order fact in Norwegian.
Now practice Norwegian
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Norwegian→Related Topics
- Placing ikke and Sentence Adverbs (Main Clause)A2 — In a main clause ikke and adverbs like alltid, aldri, ofte and kanskje sit right after the finite verb — but before a non-finite verb and before the object — so their position is fixed by the verb, not the object, the reverse of English.
- Placing ikkeA2 — Everything about where ikke sits: after the finite verb in main clauses, before it in subordinate clauses, before a non-finite verb, and the object-shift rule — a pronoun jumps in front of ikke, but a full noun stays behind it.
- Inversion: Fronting and Subject-Verb SwitchA1 — When any non-subject — a time word, an object, even a whole subordinate clause — is fronted into first position, V2 forces the subject to move behind the finite verb; English never does this, which makes it the signature learner error.
- Subordinating Conjunctions: OverviewB1 — The master list of Norwegian subordinating conjunctions and the one rule they all trigger: subordinate word order, where ikke jumps in front of the verb.
- The V2 Rule: Verb SecondA1 — The single most important rule of Norwegian word order — in every declarative main clause the finite verb sits in second position, with exactly one constituent in front of it.