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Vi låner to bøker og legger dem i våre kofferter.

Vi låner to bøker og legger dem i våre kofferter.
We borrow two books and put them in our suitcases.

Breakdown of Vi låner to bøker og legger dem i våre kofferter.

boken
the book
vi
we
i
in
og
and
vår
our
dem
them
legge
to put
to
two
kofferten
the suitcase
låne
to borrow
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Questions & Answers about Vi låner to bøker og legger dem i våre kofferter.

What does låner mean and how is it formed?

låner is the present‐tense form of the verb låne (to borrow). Norwegian verbs in group 1 (infinitive ends in –e) form the present by dropping the –e and adding –er:
låne → lån + er = låner
Present‐tense conjugation: jeg låner, du låner, han/hun låner, vi låner, dere låner, de låner.

How is legger formed from legge?

legger is the present tense of legge (to put). Verbs ending in a single vowel + consonant often double the consonant before adding –er:
legg + er = legger
Conjugation: jeg legger, du legger, han/hun legger, vi legger, dere legger, de legger.

Why isn’t the subject pronoun vi repeated before legger?

When two verbs share the same subject in coordinated clauses (joined by og), you can omit the subject pronoun in the second clause. So
Vi låner to bøker og legger dem…
means “We borrow two books and put them…” with vi understood before legger.

Why is the object pronoun dem used here instead of de?

de is the subject pronoun “they,” while dem is the object pronoun “them.” Since the borrowed books (bøker) are the direct object of legger, you use dem:
legger dem = “put them.”

Why is it to bøker and not to bok?
When you count nouns in Norwegian, you use the cardinal number + the indefinite plural. The plural of bok is bøker, so “two books” is to bøker (not two + singular).
What pattern does bok → bøker follow?

bok is a strong feminine noun with an irregular plural. Many feminine nouns form the indefinite plural by changing the vowel and adding –er:
bok (sg) → bøker (pl)
Definite forms are boka (sg def) and bøkene (pl def).

Why is it våre kofferter and not vårt kofferter?

Possessive pronouns agree with the number of the noun. kofferter is plural, so you use våre (our–plural), not the singular vårt. Also, våre kofferter is indefinite (“our suitcases” in general). If you meant “in our specific suitcases,” you could say:
i koffertene våre

Can I replace låne with leie here?
No. låne means “to borrow,” while leie means “to rent.” Using leie would change the meaning to “rent two books.” To express “borrow two books,” you must use låne.