Hun forstår ordet bokstavelig.

• Hun = the subject, she
• forstår = the verb, present tense of å forstå
• ordet = the direct object, the word
• bokstavelig = an adverb here, meaning literally or in a literal way

So grammatically, it is a very standard Norwegian main clause: subject + verb + object + adverb.

Because ordet is the definite singular form: the word.

Norwegian usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun:

• et ord = a word
• ordet = the word

If you said just ord, that would normally mean word/words in a more general or dictionary-like sense, not one specific word in the sentence.

In Norwegian, the definite article is often attached to the noun itself instead of being a separate word.

So:

• et ord = a word
• ordet = the word

This is one of the biggest differences from English. English uses a separate article; Norwegian often uses an ending.

A separate definite word can appear too, but usually when there is an adjective:

• det vanskelige ordet = the difficult word

Here there is no adjective before ordet, so the noun ending alone is enough.

Forstår is the present tense of å forstå.

• infinitive: å forstå = to understand
• present: forstår = understand / understands
• past: forsto
• past participle: forstått

A useful point for English speakers: Norwegian verbs do not change by person in the present tense.

So you get:

• jeg forstår
• du forstår
• hun forstår
• vi forstår

The verb form stays the same.

That is a very normal position for this kind of adverb.

In a simple main clause, Norwegian often puts an adverb of manner after the object:

• Hun leser boka sakte.
• Han tolker uttrykket feil.
• Hun forstår ordet bokstavelig.

So bokstavelig comes after ordet because it describes how she understands the word.

You can move things around for emphasis, but the version you have is the most neutral and natural one.

Here it is an adverb, because it describes the verb forstår.

It tells you how she understands the word: literally.

Compare:

• et bokstavelig utsagn = adjective, describing a noun
• Hun forstår det bokstavelig = adverb, describing a verb

So in this sentence, it is not describing ordet; it is describing the act of understanding.

Because words ending in -ig usually do not add -t in modern Bokmål.

So bokstavelig already has the form you expect here.

This can feel strange if you are expecting an adverb form like English literal → literally, but Norwegian does not work the same way. Very often, the adverb has the same form as the adjective, especially with words like:

• viktig
• tydelig
• vanlig
• bokstavelig

So bokstavelig is the correct form here.

It is grammatical and understandable, yes.

But depending on the context, Norwegian might also use:

• Hun tar ordet bokstavelig.
• Hun tolker ordet bokstavelig.

These can sound more like she takes the word literally or she interprets the word literally.

Your sentence with forstår focuses on her understanding. So it is fine, but in some contexts another verb may sound a bit more idiomatic.

In a yes/no question, Norwegian usually puts the verb first:

• Forstår hun ordet bokstavelig?

This shows a basic word-order pattern in Norwegian:

• statement: Hun forstår ordet bokstavelig.
• question: Forstår hun ordet bokstavelig?

So the main change is that forstår moves in front of hun.

Yes, hun is the normal subject pronoun meaning she.

Examples:

• Hun forstår. = She understands.
• Hun leser. = She reads.

If you need the object form, Norwegian usually uses henne:

• Jeg ser henne. = I see her.

So in your sentence, hun is the subject, which is why that form is used.