Noen ganger liker jeg å lese en bok i sengen før jeg sovner.

Sometimes I like to read a book in bed before I fall asleep.

Breakdown of Noen ganger liker jeg å lese en bok i sengen før jeg sovner.

• jeg: I
• en: a
• bok: the book
• å: to
• i: in
• lese: to read
• like: to like
• før: before
• noen ganger: sometimes
• seng: the bed

Questions & Answers about Noen ganger liker jeg å lese en bok i sengen før jeg sovner.

What does noen ganger mean in English?

It means “sometimes” and indicates that the action doesn’t happen all the time.

Why is the sentence structured as liker jeg instead of jeg liker?

In Norwegian, when an adverbial phrase like noen ganger is placed at the beginning of the sentence, the standard subject–verb order is inverted (following the V2 rule). That’s why you see liker jeg rather than jeg liker.

What is the function of the word å in å lese?

The word å is the infinitive marker in Norwegian. It is placed before the base form of the verb (in this case, lese, meaning “to read”) to indicate that it is in its non-finite form.

Why is it en bok instead of just bok when referring to “a book”?

In Norwegian, singular countable nouns typically require an article. En is the indefinite article used with masculine nouns. Thus, en bok translates to “a book.”

How does the phrase før jeg sovner function in the sentence, and what does sovner mean?

Før jeg sovner means “before I fall asleep.” The word sovner is the present tense of å sovne (“to fall asleep”), and the phrase as a whole indicates that the action of reading occurs right before the speaker falls asleep.