Om ettermiddagen pleier jeg å møte venner på markedet.

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Breakdown of Om ettermiddagen pleier jeg å møte venner på markedet.

• å: to
• møte: to meet
• på: at
• venn: the friend
• marked: the market
• ettermiddag: the afternoon
• pleie: to tend

Questions & Answers about Om ettermiddagen pleier jeg å møte venner på markedet.

What does om ettermiddagen mean, and why is it placed at the beginning of the sentence?

Om ettermiddagen translates to "in the afternoon" (or more generally, "in the afternoons" as a habitual time frame). It is positioned at the start of the sentence to set the time context, which is common in Norwegian. This placement also triggers the V2 (verb-second) word order rule, where the finite verb must come in the second position.

How does the construction pleier jeg å møte work, and what is its purpose?

The phrase pleier jeg å møte is used to indicate a habitual or usual action—essentially meaning "I usually meet". The verb pleier conveys the idea of something done regularly, and it is followed by an infinitive clause, introduced by å. This structure, pleier å + infinitive, is common in Norwegian for expressing routines or habits.

Why is the infinitive marker å required before møte?

In Norwegian, when using verbs that describe habitual actions (like pleier), the main action is expressed using an infinitive form. The infinitive is marked by å, so må møte becomes å møte. This is similar to constructions in English where we say "I tend to meet"; the construction mandates the infinitive to properly link the habitual verb with the action.

What does på markedet signify, and why is the preposition på used here?

På markedet means "at the market". The preposition på is chosen because in Norwegian it is commonly used to indicate locations or places where events and activities occur, especially in contexts like markets, parks, or shops.

Why does the subject jeg follow the verb pleier instead of coming before it?

This ordering follows the Norwegian V2 (verb-second) rule. When the sentence begins with a time expression like om ettermiddagen, the finite verb (pleier) takes the second position. As a result, the subject (jeg) is placed after the verb instead of before it.