Jeg jobber mindre i helgen.

I work less on the weekend.

Breakdown of Jeg jobber mindre i helgen.

• jeg: I
• jobbe: to work
• i: on
• helgen: the weekend

Questions & Answers about Jeg jobber mindre i helgen.

Why is mindre used here, and what does it mean?

Mindre is the comparative form of lite (little). Here it’s an adverb meaning “less.” In Jeg jobber mindre i helgen it modifies the verb jobber, telling us that you will work a smaller amount than usual. If you want to be more explicit you can add enn vanlig (than usual): Jeg jobber mindre enn vanlig i helgen.

Why do we say i helgen instead of på helgen or just helgen?

The idiomatic way in Bokmål to talk about “this weekend” is i helgen (literally “in the weekend”).

• På helgen is rarely used in Bokmål, though you might hear it in some dialects or when speaking about weekends in general: på helgene (on weekends).
• You can shorten i helgen to just helgen, but it sounds more casual and relies on context: Helgen er fullbooket (The weekend is fully booked).

Can I swap word order and say I helgen jobber jeg mindre?

Yes. Norwegian follows the V2 (verb‐second) rule in main clauses: whichever element you put first, the finite verb comes second. So both are correct:

• Jeg jobber mindre i helgen.
• I helgen jobber jeg mindre.
  The emphasis shifts slightly: fronting i helgen highlights the time frame.

Why is the verb in present tense? In English I’d say “I’m working less this weekend.”