Hun søker om svangerskapspenger.

Because å søke om is the normal expression for to apply for something.

• søke on its own can mean seek, search for, or apply
• but when you are applying for a benefit, permit, job, etc., Norwegian very often uses søke om + noun

So:

• Hun søker om svangerskapspenger. = She is applying for pregnancy/maternity benefits.
• Hun søker jobb. = She is applying for a job. / She is seeking a job.

In other words, om is part of the common pattern here.

Because hun is the subject form of she.

• hun = she
• henne = her

In this sentence, she is the person doing the action, so Norwegian uses hun:

• Hun søker om svangerskapspenger.

You would use henne when she is the object:

• Jeg kjenner henne. = I know her.

søker is present tense.

The infinitive is å søke = to apply / to seek.

Present tense is formed here as:

• å søke → søker

So:

• Hun søker om svangerskapspenger. = She applies for / She is applying for pregnancy benefits.

A useful point for English speakers: Norwegian present tense often covers both English simple present and present progressive.

So søker can mean:

• applies
• is applying

depending on context.

Because Norwegian does not normally form the present progressive the way English does.

English often says:

• She is applying

Norwegian usually just uses the ordinary present tense:

• Hun søker

So Norwegian does not need a separate verb like is in this sentence.

This is very common:

• Jeg spiser. = I eat / I am eating.
• Han jobber. = He works / He is working.

It is a compound noun, which is extremely common in Norwegian.

It is built from:

• svangerskap = pregnancy
• penger = money

So literally it is something like pregnancy money, but in real usage it refers to a specific type of financial benefit related to pregnancy.

Norwegian often combines words into one long noun instead of separating them:

• sykepenger = sick pay / sickness benefits
• barnetrygd = child benefit
• fødselsnummer = birth number / national identity number

So svangerskapspenger is exactly the kind of compound noun learners should get used to seeing.

Because Norwegian often leaves out the article with names of benefits, categories, and uncountable or institutional concepts.

Compare English:

• She is applying for maternity benefits.

You usually would not say:

• She is applying for the maternity benefits
  unless you mean some specific benefits already known in the conversation.

Norwegian works similarly here:

• Hun søker om svangerskapspenger.

No en/ei/et is needed.

Also, benefit words like penger, trygd, stønad, and similar terms often appear without an article when talking about the general benefit type.

Yes, in form it is connected to penger, which is a plural-looking word meaning money. But it is best to learn svangerskapspenger as a fixed term for a benefit, not to overthink it as an ordinary countable plural noun.

A few helpful points:

• penger is the usual word for money
• it behaves differently from a normal singular count noun
• in compounds like svangerskapspenger or sykepenger, the whole word often functions as the name of a benefit scheme

So although it contains penger, the most useful approach is:

• learn it as one vocabulary item
• understand it as pregnancy benefits / maternity-related benefit payments

You may hear some variation in real life, but Hun søker om svangerskapspenger is the safest and most standard form to learn.

Why?

Because søke om is the established pattern for apply for in many formal contexts, especially with:

• benefits
• permits
• support
• leave
• grants

So for a learner, the best choice is:

• søke om svangerskapspenger
• søke om støtte
• søke om visum
• søke om permisjon

The dictionary form is å søke.

When looking up Norwegian verbs, you normally search for the infinitive form, which usually includes å:

• å søke = to seek / to apply

Common forms are:

• å søke = infinitive
• søker = present
• søkte = past
• har søkt = present perfect

So if you see søker in a sentence and want to find it in a dictionary, look for søke.

The tricky part is ø.

Very roughly:

• sø has a vowel sound somewhat like the vowel in British English bird or burn, but with rounded lips
• ker is pronounced with a clear k and a light final r depending on dialect

A rough learner-friendly approximation might be:

• SUR-kerr or SER-kerr, but with rounded lips on the first vowel

Important:

• there is no exact English equivalent for ø
• it is worth listening to native audio and repeating it

Also note that søker and sukker are different:

• søker = applies / seeks
• sukker = sugar

So the vowel matters.

Yes, but Norwegian follows the V2 rule in main clauses: the finite verb usually stays in the second position.

The normal order is:

• Hun søker om svangerskapspenger.

If you move another element to the front, the verb still comes second:

• Nå søker hun om svangerskapspenger. = Now she is applying for pregnancy benefits.
• I dag søker hun om svangerskapspenger. = Today she is applying for pregnancy benefits.

Notice that when Nå or I dag comes first, it is:

• søker hun, not hun søker

That is a very important Norwegian word-order rule.

Yes, Hun søker om svangerskapspenger. is standard Bokmål.

A Nynorsk version would typically be:

• Ho søkjer om svangerskapspengar.

Main differences:

• Hun → Ho
• søker → søkjer
• svangerskapspenger → svangerskapspengar

You do not need to memorize both right away unless you are studying both written standards, but it is useful to recognize them.

You can change the verb form depending on the time reference.

Examples:

• Hun søkte om svangerskapspenger. = She applied for pregnancy benefits.
• Hun har søkt om svangerskapspenger. = She has applied for pregnancy benefits.

So the key verb forms are:

• søker = applies / is applying
• søkte = applied
• har søkt = has applied

This is useful because official or administrative Norwegian often uses exactly these kinds of forms.