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Breakdown of Jeg må snakke med sjefen i dag.
jeg
I
i dag
today
med
with
måtte
must
sjefen
the boss
snakke
to speak
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More from this lesson
Questions & Answers about Jeg må snakke med sjefen i dag.
What does må mean in this sentence?
Må is the present‐tense form of the modal verb å måtte, meaning must or have to. It expresses necessity or obligation—here, “I have to…”
Why isn’t there an å before snakke?
When you use a modal verb like må, the infinitive marker å is dropped before the next verb. So instead of writing må å snakke, you simply write må snakke.
Why is there med before sjefen?
The verb snakke (to talk) typically takes the preposition med (with) when you mean a two‐way conversation. English talk to someone corresponds to Norwegian snakke med noen. Using snakke til would imply speaking at or addressing someone rather than conversing.
What does sjefen mean, and why the -en ending?
The base noun sjef means boss. Adding -en makes it definite: sjefen = the boss. If you want to say a boss, you’d use en sjef.
Why is i dag at the end of the sentence? Where do time expressions usually go?
Norwegian follows the V2 rule (the finite verb in second position). Time expressions can appear at the beginning, after the subject, or at the end, depending on emphasis:
• Jeg må snakke med sjefen i dag (time at end)
• I dag må jeg snakke med sjefen (time first)
Can I move i dag to the beginning of the sentence?
Yes. When you put i dag first, you must keep the verb in second position:
I dag må jeg snakke med sjefen.
Can I drop jeg like some languages drop the subject pronoun?
No. Standard Norwegian requires an explicit subject pronoun. You can’t say Må snakke… to mean “I have to talk…,” except in very casual notes or headlines.
Is idag one word or two? Can I write idag instead of i dag?
The correct modern Norwegian spelling is i dag (two words). idag is an older variant and not recommended in standard writing.
Could I use skal instead of må? What’s the difference?
Yes, you can say Jeg skal snakke med sjefen i dag.
• skal = plan or future action (as in I am going to talk…)
• må = necessity or obligation (as in I have to talk…)