Han går på tvers av veien.

På tvers av is a set expression meaning across.

So Han går på tvers av veien means that he is walking across the road.

Literally, på tvers has the idea of something being crosswise or sideways across something, and av completes the expression. In practice, you should learn på tvers av as one chunk.

It is best to treat på tvers av as a fixed expression.

The parts are:

• på = on
• tvers = crosswise / transverse
• av = of / off / from, depending on context

But if you translate word by word, it will sound unnatural in English. In this sentence, the whole phrase simply means across.

So for learners, the safest approach is:

• på tvers av veien = across the road

Veien is the definite form of vei.

• en vei = a road
• veien = the road

Norwegian usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like the.

So:

• vei = road
• veien = the road

In this sentence, veien is natural because it refers to a specific road in the situation.

Because Norwegian often puts the definite article at the end of the noun.

Compare:

• English: the road
• Norwegian: veien

This is very common in Norwegian:

• bilen = the car
• huset = the house
• mannen = the man

So veien already includes the meaning of the road.

Går is the present tense of å gå.

• å gå = to walk / to go
• går = walk / walks / am walking / is walking / are walking, depending on context

So:

• Han går = He walks / He is walking

In this sentence, English will usually prefer He is walking across the road, but Norwegian uses the simple present form går.

Norwegian uses the simple present much more often than English.

So where English often says:

• He is walking across the road

Norwegian can simply say:

• Han går på tvers av veien

This is completely normal. Norwegian does have ways to emphasize ongoing action, but in many everyday sentences, the simple present is enough.

Går is pronounced roughly like gor with a long vowel, but the å sound does not exist exactly in English.

A helpful approximation is:

• går ≈ gor / gore without a strong English r

A few useful notes:

• å is a separate Norwegian letter
• it sounds somewhat like the vowel in British English law or more, depending on accent
• the r is pronounced in Norwegian, but not always the same way as in English

If you are learning pronunciation, focus especially on the vowel å.

It is a natural sentence, but there are other common ways to say something similar.

For example:

• Han går på tvers av veien = He walks across the road
• Han krysser veien = He crosses the road

The difference is that går på tvers av veien emphasizes the action of walking across, while krysser veien uses the verb to cross more directly.

Both can work, but krysser veien is often the more direct equivalent of crosses the road.

Both can relate to movement from one side to the other, but they are not always used in exactly the same way.

• på tvers av veien clearly means across the road
• over veien often means across / over there on the other side of the road

So:

• Han går på tvers av veien = He is walking across the road
• Han bor over veien = He lives across the road / on the other side of the road

A simple way to remember it:

• på tvers av focuses on the crossing movement
• over often focuses more on the other side

Because han is the subject, meaning he.

Norwegian basic word order is often:

• subject + verb + other information

So:

• Han = he
• går = walks / is walking
• på tvers av veien = across the road

This gives:

• Han går på tvers av veien

That is the normal, straightforward word order for a main clause.

Yes, you can, but then the word order changes because of the V2 rule in Norwegian.

You could say:

• På tvers av veien går han.

This is grammatical, but it is more marked or stylistic. In ordinary conversation, Han går på tvers av veien is more neutral.

The important rule is that in a main clause, the finite verb usually stays in the second position.

So if you move something to the front, the verb still comes second:

• Han går på tvers av veien.
• På tvers av veien går han.

Not:

• På tvers av veien han går.

Yes. Å gå can mean both to walk and, in some contexts, to go.

In this sentence, because of på tvers av veien, the meaning is clearly physical movement on foot, so walk is the best translation.

Examples:

• Han går hjem. = He goes home / He walks home
• Han går på tvers av veien. = He walks across the road

So the exact English translation depends on context.

Sometimes it can express a similar basic idea, but not always with the same nuance.

• over gaten often means across the street or to the other side of the street
• på tvers av veien emphasizes movement across it

Also, gate usually means street, while vei means road or sometimes way, depending on context.

So these are similar but not automatically interchangeable in every situation.