Banken prøver å overtale låntakeren.

Because both nouns are in the definite singular form.

• en bank = a bank

• banken = the bank

• en låntaker = a borrower
• låntakeren = the borrower

In Norwegian, the definite article is usually added to the end of the noun as a suffix, instead of being a separate word like English the.

So:

• Banken = the bank
• låntakeren = the borrower

Both words are common-gender nouns, which is why the definite singular ending is -en.

Norwegian usually expresses the by attaching it to the noun.

Compare:

• en bank = a bank

• banken = the bank

• en låntaker = a borrower
• låntakeren = the borrower

This is very normal in Norwegian. English uses a separate article, but Norwegian often uses a suffix instead.

Prøver is the present tense of å prøve.

• å prøve = to try
• prøver = tries / is trying / try

So Banken prøver å overtale låntakeren means The bank is trying to persuade the borrower or The bank tries to persuade the borrower, depending on context.

Norwegian present tense is often formed by adding -r to the infinitive:

• å prøve → prøver
• å snakke → snakker
• å bo → bor

Because overtale is in the infinitive.

• å overtale = to persuade
• prøver å overtale = tries to persuade

This works a lot like English to before a verb.

So the structure is:

• prøver = finite verb, present tense
• å overtale = infinitive phrase

Many Norwegian verbs are followed by å + infinitive, and prøve is one of them:

• Jeg prøver å sove. = I’m trying to sleep.
• Hun prøver å lære norsk. = She is trying to learn Norwegian.

The dictionary forms are:

• prøver → å prøve
• overtale → å overtale

In Norwegian, verbs are usually listed with å in dictionaries, because å marks the infinitive.

So if you look them up, you would search for:

• å prøve
• å overtale

It comes from the noun låntaker.

• en låntaker = a borrower
• låntakeren = the borrower

You can think of it as:

• lån = loan
• taker = taker / one who takes

So låntaker literally has the idea of loan-taker, which matches borrower.

Then Norwegian adds the definite ending:

• låntaker
  • -en → låntakeren

This is the normal Norwegian word order for a main clause:

subject + finite verb + rest of sentence

So here:

• Banken = subject
• prøver = finite verb
• å overtale låntakeren = rest of the predicate

This is very similar to standard English word order:

• The bank
  • is trying
    • to persuade the borrower

Norwegian main clauses normally follow the V2 rule, which means the finite verb comes in the second position. In this sentence, the subject comes first, so the verb naturally comes right after it.

Yes, very much so.

In this sentence:

• å overtale noen = to persuade someone

So:

• Banken prøver å overtale låntakeren = The bank is trying to persuade the borrower

The verb usually takes a direct object, the person being persuaded:

• Hun overtalte ham. = She persuaded him.
• Vi prøver å overtale dem. = We are trying to persuade them.

Yes. That is a very natural alternative.

• å prøve = to try
• å forsøke = to try / to attempt

So:

• Banken prøver å overtale låntakeren
• Banken forsøker å overtale låntakeren

Both are correct. Forsøker can sound a bit more formal or written, while prøver is very common in everyday speech.

A rough guide for an English speaker would be:

BAHN-ken PRUH-ver oh OVER-tah-leh LOAN-tah-keh-ren

A few notes:

• Banken: the a is closer to a broad ah sound.
• prøver: the ø sound does not exist in English; it is similar to the vowel in French peur or German hören. English speakers often need practice with this one.
• å is pronounced like a long aw / oh sound depending on dialect.
• overtale has four syllables: o-ver-ta-le
• låntakeren has the long å vowel, somewhat like aw

Exact pronunciation varies by dialect, but this rough version is enough to get started.

Yes, but then the word order changes because of Norwegian V2 word order.

For example:

• Låntakeren prøver banken å overtale. → not natural in ordinary Norwegian
• Låntakeren prøver banken å overtale. sounds marked and awkward

A better way to front another element would be something like:

• Låntakeren prøver banken å overtale. is generally not how you would say it

Instead, Norwegian often keeps the normal order unless there is a special reason to highlight something. If you front an element, the finite verb still stays in second position.

For example:

• I dag prøver banken å overtale låntakeren. = Today, the bank is trying to persuade the borrower.

Here:

• I dag is first
• prøver must still be second
• banken comes after the verb

Yes, it is grammatical and natural.

It sounds like a neutral written or spoken sentence meaning that the bank is trying to persuade the borrower. The vocabulary is slightly formal because of the topic, but the grammar is completely standard.

A native speaker would understand it immediately.