Forsinkelsesårsaken forklarer ventetiden.

to explain

Breakdown of Forsinkelsesårsaken forklarer ventetiden.

• forsinkelsesårsaken: the cause of the delay
• ventetiden: the waiting time

Questions & Answers about Forsinkelsesårsaken forklarer ventetiden.

Why is Forsinkelsesårsaken written as one long word?

Because Norwegian very often forms compound nouns by joining words together.

Forsinkelsesårsaken can be broken down like this:

• forsinkelse = delay
• årsak = cause
• -en = the definite ending

So the structure is basically:

• forsinkelsesårsak = cause of delay / delay cause
• forsinkelsesårsaken = the cause of the delay

In English, we usually separate this idea into several words, but Norwegian often prefers one compound noun.

What is the -s- doing in Forsinkelsesårsaken?

That -s- is a linking element used in many Norwegian compounds.

Here:

• forsinkelse
  • årsak
    becomes
• forsinkelsesårsak

This -s- does not mean possession in the same way as English 's. It is mainly a connector that helps the compound sound natural.

You will see this a lot in Norwegian compounds, for example in words where the first part ends in a noun and an -s- is inserted before the next part.

Why does the noun end in -en in Forsinkelsesårsaken?