Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Norwegian grammar and vocabulary.
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.”
Norwegian doesn’t have a special progressive form. The present tense jobber covers both “I work” and “I am working.” If you want to stress that it’s in progress right now you can use holder på å + infinitive: Jeg holder på å jobbe mindre i helgen, but that’s more formal/explicit than needed.
What about arbeide vs jobbe—can I say Jeg arbeider mindre i helgen?
Yes, you can. Arbeide is a more formal synonym for jobbe.
- Jeg jobber is casual and very common in everyday speech.
- Jeg arbeider sounds a bit more formal or old‐fashioned.
Why does helgen end in -en? Isn’t the word for weekend helg?
Helg is the indefinite form (a weekend). To say “the weekend,” you add the definite ending -en in Bokmål: helgen. Since we use i helgen to mean “this weekend,” it’s already in the definite form.
How do I pronounce jobber?
The j in Norwegian sounds like the English y in yes. So jobber is pronounced roughly YOB-ber, with a short “o” like in “job.”