Telefonen ringer.

the phone

Breakdown of Telefonen ringer.

• ringe: to ring

Questions & Answers about Telefonen ringer.

What does the -en ending in Telefonen indicate?

In Norwegian, nouns take endings to mark definiteness. The suffix -en on telefon makes it definite singular masculine/feminine, so telefonen means the phone, as opposed to en telefon (a phone).

Why is the verb ringer used here and what tense is it?

Ringer is the present-tense form of å ringe (to ring). Norwegian uses the present tense both for simple present (habitual actions) and present continuous (actions happening right now). In context Telefonen ringer means The phone is ringing.

How does word order work in Telefonen ringer?

Norwegian follows the V2 (verb-second) rule: the finite verb must occupy the second position in main clauses. Here you have Subject-Verb (Telefonen-ringer). If you add an adverb first (like Nå), the verb stays second and the subject comes third: Nå ringer telefonen.

How would you pronounce Telefonen ringer?

Stress falls on the second syllable of telefonen (te-LEF-o-nen) and the first syllable of ringer (RING-er). Approximate phonetics: [teˈleːfɔnən ˈrɪŋər]. The g in ringer is soft, similar to the English “ng.”