Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Søsteren min sier at andre ting er viktigere enn en enkelt tast. - My sister says that other things are more important than a single key.

Both søsteren min and min søster are grammatically correct in Norwegian. Placing the pronoun after the noun is very common and is called “double definiteness” because you use both the definite suffix on the noun (–en) and the possessive pronoun. This structure often emphasises which specific sister you mean. Putting the pronoun first (min søster) shifts the emphasis slightly onto the fact that she is your sister.

Why do we need the conjunction at after sier, and can it be omitted like in English?

In Norwegian you almost always use at (that) to introduce a subordinate clause—unlike English, where you can sometimes drop “that.” Written Bokmål usually keeps at: Søsteren min sier at… In very informal speech you might hear it omitted, but in standard language you include it.

What is the word order rule after at in a subordinate clause? Why is it andre ting er and not er andre ting?

Norwegian subordinate clauses introduced by at follow Subject–Verb–Object (SVO) just like main clauses. The conjunction at itself doesn’t count as an element, so the subject (andre ting) still comes before the verb (er). Hence at andre ting er viktigere, not at er andre ting viktigere.

Why isn’t there a comma before at? In English we often put one before “that.”

Norwegian punctuation rules differ from English. You generally do not place a comma before at when it introduces a subordinate clause. Commas are used in other contexts (lists, parenthetical remarks), but not before at.

How do you form the comparative viktigere and the superlative of viktig?

In Bokmål most adjectives form the comparative with –ere and the superlative with –est. So you get viktig → viktigere → viktigst. A few adjectives are irregular, but viktig follows the regular pattern.

Why do we use enn in viktigere enn, and not another word?

When making a comparison of inequality—“more/less … than”—Norwegian always uses enn (than). viktigere enn en enkelt tast literally means “more important than a single key.” No other preposition is used for that construction.

Why is it andre ting (other things) and not de andre tingene or en annen ting?

andre ting means “other things” in general (indefinite plural). de andre tingene would be “the other things” (specific), and en annen ting would mean “one other thing” (singular). Here the meaning is “things in general” compared to one key.

Why is the indefinite article en used with tast, and could it be ei tast since “tast” is feminine?

In Bokmål many feminine nouns like tast can take either ei (feminine) or en (common gender). In standard Bokmål en tast is by far the most common. You’ll see ei tast more in dialect speech or in Nynorsk.

Why is the adjective enkelt not inflected as enkel before tast even though “tast” is common gender?

When enkelt means “single” or “only” (en enkelt tast = just one key), it becomes indeclinable and stays enkelt regardless of gender. If enkel meant “simple,” you would decline it normally (en enkel oppgave), but for “a single key” you always use the uninflected form enkelt.

Why is min used instead of mitt or mine for søsteren?

Possessive pronouns in Norwegian agree with the gender and number of the noun they modify. søster is a common-gender singular noun, so you use min. mitt would be for neuter nouns, and mine is for plurals.

Why isn’t there a dummy subject like det er before andre ting? English uses “that there are other things …”.

Norwegian often omits the dummy subject det when the real subject starts the subordinate clause. Instead of sier at det er andre ting…, you can simply say sier at andre ting er viktigere…. This makes the sentence more direct.

How would you express the same idea in direct speech?

In direct speech you would write:
Søsteren min sier: “Andre ting er viktigere enn en enkelt tast.”
Use a colon before the quote and surround the spoken words with quotation marks.