På audiografens oppfølgingstime kommer det an på om høreapparatbatteriet er nytt.

Questions & Answers about På audiografens oppfølgingstime kommer det an på om høreapparatbatteriet er nytt.

Why does the sentence start with På? Does it mean on here?

Here på means at, not on in the physical English sense.

  • På audiografens oppfølgingstime = at the audiologist’s follow-up appointment
  • In Norwegian, på is often used for events, appointments, meetings, classes, and similar situations.

So this is a very natural use:

  • på skolen = at school
  • på jobb = at work
  • på møte = at a meeting
  • på timen = at the appointment / during the lesson
What does audiografens mean, and why does it end in -ens?

Audiografens is the genitive form of audiografen.

Breakdown:

  • audiograf = audiologist / hearing specialist
  • audiografen = the audiologist
  • audiografens = the audiologist’s

So:

  • audiografens oppfølgingstime = the audiologist’s follow-up appointment

The -s is the usual Norwegian possessive ending, similar to English ’s.

Why is oppfølgingstime written as one word?

Because Norwegian normally writes compound nouns as one word.

Here:

  • oppfølging = follow-up
  • time = hour, lesson, appointment

Together:

  • oppfølgingstime = follow-up appointment

This is very typical in Norwegian. English often separates these words, but Norwegian usually combines them:

  • høreapparat = hearing aid
  • sykehuslege = hospital doctor
  • arbeidsdag = workday
What exactly does time mean here? Is it literally hour?

Not usually. In this context, time means appointment.

Norwegian time can mean:

  • hour
  • lesson/class period
  • appointment

So in healthcare contexts:

  • jeg har time hos legen = I have an appointment with the doctor

That is the meaning here.

What does kommer det an på mean? It doesn’t look literal.

Kommer det an på is an idiomatic expression meaning depends on.

So:

  • det kommer an på = it depends
  • det kommer an på om ... = it depends on whether ...

You should learn this as a fixed phrase, because the literal meanings of the individual words are not very helpful here.

Examples:

  • Det kommer an på været. = It depends on the weather.
  • Det kommer an på hva du vil. = It depends on what you want.
Why is there a det in kommer det an på?

The det is part of the fixed expression det kommer an på.

In English we also say it depends, where it does not refer to a concrete thing. Norwegian works similarly here:

  • Det kommer an på ... = It depends on ...

So even though det may feel vague, it is required in this expression.

Why is the word order kommer det an på instead of det kommer an på?

Because Norwegian has verb-second word order in main clauses.

The sentence starts with another element:

  • På audiografens oppfølgingstime = at the audiologist’s follow-up appointment

When that comes first, the finite verb must come second:

  • På audiografens oppfølgingstime kommer det an på ...

If there were no opening phrase, you would say:

  • Det kommer an på om høreapparatbatteriet er nytt.

So the fronted phrase causes inversion:

  • Det kommer ...
  • På audiografens oppfølgingstime kommer det ...
What is the difference between om here and hvis?

Here om means whether, not if in the conditional sense.

  • det kommer an på om ... = it depends on whether ...
  • hvis usually means if in a condition

So in this sentence, om is the correct choice because the meaning is whether the battery is new, not a condition like if this happens, then...

Compare:

  • Jeg vet ikke om han kommer. = I don’t know whether he is coming.
  • Hvis han kommer, blir jeg glad. = If he comes, I’ll be happy.
Why is it høreapparatbatteriet as one long word?

Again, this is a Norwegian compound noun.

Breakdown:

  • høreapparat = hearing aid
  • batteri = battery
  • høreapparatbatteri = hearing-aid battery
  • høreapparatbatteriet = the hearing-aid battery

Norwegian strongly prefers compounds like this instead of separate words.

Why is it batteriet and not just et batteri?

Because the sentence is talking about a specific battery, not just any battery.

  • et batteri = a battery
  • batteriet = the battery

Since the context is the hearing aid being discussed, Norwegian naturally uses the definite form:

  • høreapparatbatteriet = the hearing aid battery

English sometimes uses the where Norwegian uses a definite ending on the noun itself.

Why is it nytt and not ny?

Because batteri is a neuter noun:

  • et batteri

The adjective ny must agree with the noun:

  • en ny stol = a new chair
  • et nytt batteri = a new battery

In the sentence, the adjective comes after er, but it still agrees with the noun:

  • batteriet er nytt = the battery is new

So nytt is the neuter form of ny.

Why doesn’t the adjective look definite if the noun is definite? Why not something like det nye?

Because this adjective is predicative, not attributive.

Compare:

Attributive adjective: before the noun

  • det nye batteriet = the new battery

Predicative adjective: after a verb like er

  • batteriet er nytt = the battery is new

In predicative position, Norwegian uses the form that agrees with gender/number, not the definite adjective pattern.

So:

  • det nye batteriet = the new battery
  • batteriet er nytt = the battery is new
Is audiograf exactly the same as English audiologist?

Not always exactly, depending on the healthcare system, but for a learner it is often close enough to understand it as a hearing specialist / audiologist.

In real usage, professional titles can differ somewhat between countries, so the translation may not be perfectly one-to-one. But in this sentence, the important point is that it refers to the specialist handling hearing and hearing aids.

Could this sentence also be phrased in a simpler way?

Yes. A simpler version could be:

  • Det kommer an på om høreapparatbatteriet er nytt.
    = It depends on whether the hearing aid battery is new.

The original sentence adds the setting:

  • På audiografens oppfølgingstime = at the audiologist’s follow-up appointment

So the full sentence is just more specific about when/in what context this matters.

What is the literal structure of the whole sentence?

A word-for-word style breakdown is:

  • På = at
  • audiografens = the audiologist’s
  • oppfølgingstime = follow-up appointment
  • kommer = comes
  • det = it
  • an på = on / depends on
  • om = whether
  • høreapparatbatteriet = the hearing-aid battery
  • er = is
  • nytt = new

A more natural English rendering is:

  • At the audiologist’s follow-up appointment, it depends on whether the hearing aid battery is new.

So the main things to notice are:

  1. Norwegian compounds are written as one word.
  2. det kommer an på is an idiom meaning it depends.
  3. The adjective nytt agrees with the neuter noun batteri.
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