Vi kontrollerer lageret.

Vi is the subject pronoun, and it means we.

In Norwegian, subject pronouns are used very regularly, so a normal full sentence like this needs vi just as English needs we.

jeg = I
du = you
han/hun = he/she
vi = we
dere = you (plural)
de = they

Kontrollerer is the present tense of the verb å kontrollere.

So:

• å kontrollere = to check / inspect / verify / control
• kontrollerer = check(s), am/is/are checking, control(s)

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

So you get:

• jeg kontrollerer = I check
• du kontrollerer = you check
• vi kontrollerer = we check

The verb form stays the same.

Not always. This is a useful vocabulary warning.

In many contexts, å kontrollere means:

• to check
• to inspect
• to verify
• to examine

It can sometimes mean to control, but in a sentence like Vi kontrollerer lageret, it often sounds more like we are checking/inspecting the inventory/warehouse than we control it.

So this verb can be a false friend if you translate it too mechanically.

Because lageret is the definite singular form.

• et lager = a warehouse / an inventory / a stockroom
• lageret = the warehouse / the inventory / the stockroom

Norwegian usually expresses the by adding an ending to the noun instead of putting a separate word in front.

For neuter nouns like lager, the definite ending is often -et:

• et hus → huset
• et bord → bordet
• et lager → lageret

So lageret already includes the idea of the.

Because Norwegian normally uses a suffix for definiteness.

English:

• the inventory

Norwegian:

• lageret

That -et ending is doing the job of English the.

This is one of the biggest structural differences English speakers notice early on.

Lager can mean different things depending on context, such as:

• warehouse
• stockroom
• inventory
• stock

So the exact meaning depends on the situation.

For example:

• In a business/accounting context, lageret may mean the inventory or the stock.
• In a physical/logistics context, it may mean the warehouse or the stockroom.

So even if you already know the intended meaning here, it is good to know that lager is a flexible word.

This sentence has the basic Norwegian main-clause word order:

Subject + Verb + Object

• Vi = subject
• kontrollerer = verb
• lageret = object

So it is a very straightforward sentence.

However, Norwegian main clauses also follow the V2 rule (the verb is in the second position). That becomes more noticeable when something else comes first:

• I dag kontrollerer vi lageret. = Today we check the inventory.

Here, I dag comes first, so the verb kontrollerer still stays in second position, and vi moves after it.

Yes. Very often, the Norwegian present tense covers both:

• We check the inventory
• We are checking the inventory

So Vi kontrollerer lageret can work for either, depending on context.

If you want to make the ongoing action extra clear, Norwegian can use something like:

• Vi holder på å kontrollere lageret. = We are in the process of checking the inventory.

But in many ordinary situations, the simple present form is enough.

Yes, it is a regular verb.

Its forms are typically:

• å kontrollere = infinitive
• kontrollerer = present
• kontrollerte = past
• har kontrollert = past participle / have checked

That makes it a fairly predictable verb to learn.

You would usually put the verb before the subject:

• Kontrollerer vi lageret? = Are we checking the inventory? / Do we check the inventory?

This is a common pattern in Norwegian yes/no questions:

• statement: Vi kontrollerer lageret.
• question: Kontrollerer vi lageret?

So the main change is verb + subject instead of subject + verb.