Questions & Answers about Vi varmer suppe på kjøkkenet.
What is the infinitive of varmer, and how is it conjugated here?
Varmer is the present tense of the verb å varme (“to warm/heat”). In Norwegian, the present is formed by adding -r to the infinitive stem:
• jeg varmer
• du varmer
• han/hun varmer
• vi varmer
…etc.
Why is there no article before suppe? Shouldn’t it be en suppe?
In this sentence suppe is used as a mass (uncountable) noun—like “soup” in English—so you omit the indefinite article. If you mean a specific, countable bowl of soup, you could say en suppe:
• Vi varmer suppe. (We heat soup in general.)
• Vi varmer en suppe. (We heat one (a specific) bowl of soup.)
Can I say varmer opp suppe instead? What does opp add?
Å varme opp literally means “to heat up.” The particle opp puts extra emphasis on reaching a higher temperature. However, in everyday speech you can drop opp—varmer suppe still clearly means “heat up soup.”
Why is på used with kjøkkenet instead of i?
Certain locations in Norwegian—like skole, kino, kjøkken, postkontor—take på rather than i. So even though in English you say “in the kitchen,” in Norwegian you naturally say på kjøkkenet.