Vi liker å sove om natten.

We like to sleep at night.

Breakdown of Vi liker å sove om natten.

• vi: we
• å: to
• sove: to sleep
• natt: the night
• om: at

Questions & Answers about Vi liker å sove om natten.

Why do we say Vi liker å sove instead of Vi liker sove?

In Norwegian, the å is the infinitive marker. Whenever you want to express the idea of doing something, you generally use å before the verb in its infinitive form (sove = to sleep). So Vi liker å sove literally translates to We like to sleep.

What does om natten mean, and why use om here?

Om natten translates to at night. The word om is used in Norwegian to talk about general times of day when something happens habitually or typically, like om dagen (in the daytime), om kvelden (in the evening), etc.

Is the sentence structure Vi liker å sove om natten a typical Norwegian word order?

Yes, it is. The subject (Vi) comes first, followed by the verb phrase (liker å sove), and then the adverbial phrase of time (om natten). This is a standard Norwegian word order: Subject – Verb – (Object if any) – Adverbial.

Could I also say Vi liker å sove på natten or i natten?

In most contexts, om natten is the natural, idiomatic phrase. Saying på natten or i natten would sound odd to native speakers. If you want to say you do something in the middle of the night, you might use om natta (a more colloquial form) or another construction, but om natten is best for the general idea of sleeping at night.

How do I pronounce liker and natten correctly?

• liker: The i is like the short ee in English bit, and the e is a short, neutral vowel. It roughly comes out as LEE-ker (with a short i).
• natten: The first a can be pronounced like the short a in English father (but briefer), and the tt is pronounced distinctly. It sounds like NAH-ten (the final en is a light “en” sound).