Hun lykkes endelig.

She finally succeeds.

Breakdown of Hun lykkes endelig.

• hun: she
• endelig: finally
• lykkes: to succeed

Questions & Answers about Hun lykkes endelig.

What is the dictionary form of lykkes, and what tense is it here?

The dictionary form is å lykkes. In this sentence, lykkes is the present tense form.

Useful forms:

• å lykkes — infinitive
• lykkes — present
• lyktes — past
• har lyktes — present perfect

So Hun lykkes endelig uses the simple present.

Why does lykkes end in -s? Is it passive?

No — not here.

Å lykkes is one of those Norwegian verbs that naturally end in -s. Even though -s can often mark a passive in Norwegian, lykkes in this sentence is just a normal verb meaning to succeed.

So:

• Hun lykkes = She succeeds
• not She is succeeded

This is something English speakers often notice because the form looks unusual at first.

Why is there no extra verb like does or is?

Because Norwegian does not need one here.

In English, you sometimes use extra helping words:

• She does succeed
• She is succeeding

In Norwegian, the single verb lykkes can cover the basic idea by itself:

• Hun lykkes

So you do not add er or another auxiliary in a normal sentence like this.