Questions & Answers about Jeg fryser når det er kaldt.
The infinitive is å fryse. Conjugation:
• Present: jeg fryser (I freeze/am freezing)
• Past: jeg frøs (I froze)
• Supine (perfect): har frosset (have frozen)
You could say hvis det er kaldt (if it is cold), but that shifts the meaning slightly:
• når = “when/whenever” (a general truth or repeated event)
• hvis = “if” (a conditional/supposition)
So jeg fryser når det er kaldt = “I get cold whenever it’s cold,” whereas jeg fryser hvis det er kaldt = “I’ll freeze if it’s cold (this time).”
Standard (Eastern Norwegian) phonetic approximation:
• Jeg = [jæɪ̯] (like English “yeh”)
• fryser = [ˈfrʏːsər] (the “y” is like the French “u” in “tu,” and the ending is a soft “-ser”).
In rapid speech you often hear [jæ ˈfrysə].
If you start with the subordinate clause, you must use the V2 rule (verb-second) in the main clause:
Correct: Når det er kaldt, fryser jeg.
Notice fryser (the verb) comes immediately after the comma, then the subject jeg. If you leave the main clause in its normal order (“jeg fryser”) after a fronted subordinate clause, you break the V2 rule.