Jeg varmer dem i ovnen; dessverre blir noen brent.

I warm them in the oven; unfortunately some get burned.

Breakdown of Jeg varmer dem i ovnen; dessverre blir noen brent.

• jeg: I
• i: in
• dem: them
• dessverre: unfortunately
• varme: to warm
• ovnen: the oven
• noen: some
• bli brent: to get burned

Questions & Answers about Jeg varmer dem i ovnen; dessverre blir noen brent.

What is the tense and meaning of varmer in this sentence?

varmer is the present‐tense form of the verb å varme, which means to heat or to warm. With Jeg as the subject, Jeg varmer means I heat or I am heating.

Why is dem used here, and what’s the difference between de and dem?

dem is the accusative (object) form of the pronoun, equivalent to them. de is the nominative (subject) form, used as they. In Jeg varmer dem, dem is the direct object receiving the action.

Why does the sentence say i ovnen instead of i en ovn or på ovnen?

i means in, so i ovnen is in the oven. We use the definite form ovnen because it refers to a specific oven. i en ovn would mean in an oven (indefinite) and på ovnen would mean on the oven (on top of it).

What role does dessverre play, and why is it placed at the beginning of the second clause?

dessverre means unfortunately and functions as a sentence adverb modifying the whole clause. After a semicolon, the second clause counts as a new main clause, so we follow verb-second (V2) word order. Placing dessverre first adds emphasis: unfortunately, some get burnt.

How is the passive voice formed in blir brent?

One way to form passive in Norwegian is with bli (to become) in its present tense blir, plus the past participle brent of brenne. So blir brent literally means get burnt or are burnt.

What does noen refer to in this context, and is av dem needed?

Here noen means some (of them), referring back to dem. Since it’s clear, you can drop av dem. If you want to be explicit, you can say noen av dem.

Why is the past participle of brenne brent, and is it also used as an adjective?

brenne is irregular in Norwegian; its past participle is brent. The same form works in passive constructions and as an adjective meaning burnt, for example et brent stykke mat (a burnt piece of food).

What’s the purpose of the semicolon here instead of a comma or conjunction?

The semicolon links two closely related independent clauses without a conjunction. It’s similar to English usage. You could also use a period or add a conjunction like men: Jeg varmer dem i ovnen, men noen blir brent.