Hvileperioden begynner snart.

The dormancy period begins soon.

Breakdown of Hvileperioden begynner snart.

• snart: soon
• begynne: to begin
• hvileperioden: the dormancy period

Questions & Answers about Hvileperioden begynner snart.

Why is hvileperioden one word?

Because Norwegian often makes compound nouns by joining words together.

• hvile = rest
• periode = period

So hvileperiode means rest period.

Then the ending -n/-en is added to make it definite:

• hvileperiode = a rest period
• hvileperioden = the rest period

This is very common in Norwegian.

What does the ending -en in hvileperioden mean?

It marks the noun as definite, like the in English.

So:

• en hvileperiode = a rest period
• hvileperioden = the rest period

In Norwegian, the definite article is often attached to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word.

Why is there no separate word for the?

Norwegian usually puts definiteness on the noun itself.

Instead of saying something like the rest period, Norwegian says hvileperioden, where the noun carries the meaning of the.

This is one of the biggest differences from English noun structure.

Why is begynner in the present tense if the action happens in the near future?