Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Norwegian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Han går ned trappen.
What does går mean in this sentence, and what is its infinitive form?
Går is the present tense of å gå, meaning “goes” or “walks.” In Norwegian the same verb covers both English senses; context tells you which one fits.
What is the role of ned here—an adverb or a preposition?
Ned is a directional adverb meaning “down.” It tells you the direction of the action (“goes down”). You don’t need a separate preposition with it.
Why don’t we say i trappen or på trappen instead of just ned trappen?
Because ned already conveys “into/down to” that space. In English you’d say “down the stairs” without an extra “into.” Norwegian treats ned as a complete direction marker.
Why is it trappen rather than en trapp or trappene?
Trapp is “staircase” or “stairs.” By adding the suffix -en you make it definite: trappen = “the stairs/the staircase.” You wouldn’t say en trapp here because that would be “a staircase,” which changes the meaning. Trappene would be the plural (“the staircases” or “the stairs” if referring to separate staircases), but we normally talk about one staircase as a unit.
Is Han går ned trappa correct as well?
Yes. Trappa is an informal or dialectal variant of trappen (especially in speech). Both mean “the stairs.”
Could I say Han går ned i trappen? If so, what’s the nuance?
You can, but it’s less common. Han går ned i trappen literally “he goes down into the staircase.” It emphasizes entering the staircase, whereas ned trappen focuses on moving down along it.
How would you say “He goes up the stairs” in Norwegian?
Just swap ned with opp:
Han går opp trappen.
Why is the word order Subject–Verb–Adverb–Object? Could I move ned elsewhere?
Norwegian follows the V2 rule (verb-second), so you have Han (S) går (V) ned (Adv) trappen (O). You could front ned trappen for emphasis, but then you must keep the verb second:
Ned trappen går han.
This sounds poetic or emphatic, not everyday speech.
How would you express “He is going down the stairs” to emphasize the ongoing action?
Norwegian usually uses the simple present for an ongoing action: Han går ned trappen.
If you really need a “progressive,” you can say: Han holder på å gå ned trappen, literally “he is in the process of going down the stairs.”
Could you use stiger instead of går, as in Han stiger ned trappen?
You could use stige (“to ascend/descend”) but it’s formal and less common in this context. Han stiger ned trappen sounds bookish. Everyday speech uses gå for walking up or down stairs.