Jeg er kvalm.

I am nauseous.

Breakdown of Jeg er kvalm.

• jeg: I
• være: to be
• kvalm: nauseous

Questions & Answers about Jeg er kvalm.

What does each word do in Jeg er kvalm?

• Jeg = the subject pronoun I
• er = the present tense of å være (to be)
• kvalm = an adjective describing how the speaker feels

So grammatically, it is:

subject + verb + adjective

Why is it er and not har?

Because kvalm is an adjective, and in Norwegian adjectives like this normally go with å være.

So Norwegian says, literally:

I am nauseous

not I have nauseous.

There is also a noun kvalme (nausea), and then you can say Jeg har kvalme, but that sounds a bit more like talking about the condition itself. Jeg er kvalm is the most natural everyday way to say it.

Is kvalm an adjective, and does it change form?

Yes, kvalm is an adjective.

In this sentence it stays in its basic form because it describes jeg.

Like many Norwegian adjectives, it can change in other contexts:

• kvalm = common gender / singular basic form
• kvalmt = neuter
• kvalme = plural / definite forms

Examples:

• Jeg er kvalm.
• Det er kvalmt her inne.
• Vi ble kvalme.

But with jeg, you use kvalm.