Jeg liker å stå opp tidlig fordi dagen er lang.

I like to get up early because the day is long.

Breakdown of Jeg liker å stå opp tidlig fordi dagen er lang.

• jeg: I
• være: to be
• å: to
• lang: long
• dag: the day
• fordi: because
• tidlig: early
• stå opp: to get up

Questions & Answers about Jeg liker å stå opp tidlig fordi dagen er lang.

What does the verb liker mean in this sentence, and how is it used grammatically?

Liker means “like” in English. It is the present tense form of the verb “å like,” and it is used with the subject jeg (I) to express a general preference. Here, it tells us that the speaker enjoys or prefers the action that follows.

Why is the infinitive marker å used before stå opp, and what does it signify?

In Norwegian, the particle å is used to mark the infinitive form of a verb—much like “to” in English. In the sentence, stå opp is in its base form (infinitive) after the verb liker, indicating that “getting up” is the activity the speaker enjoys.

Even though stå opp literally translates to “stand up,” what is its idiomatic meaning in this context?

While stå opp can literally mean “stand up,” in everyday Norwegian it is a standard idiom meaning “to get up” or “to wake up.” It specifically refers to the action of rising from sleep in the morning.

What role does the conjunction fordi play in this sentence?

Fordi means “because” in Norwegian. It introduces a subordinate clause that gives the reason for the speaker’s preference. In this example, it shows that the reason for liking to get up early is that “the day is long.”

How is the clause dagen er lang structured, and what does it indicate about the speaker's reasoning?

The clause dagen er lang consists of the subject dagen (“the day”), the verb er (“is”), and the adjective lang (“long”). This simple declarative structure explains the condition or quality of the day. The speaker implies that an early start is preferable because it makes it possible to make the most of a long day.