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Questions & Answers about Strømmen kommer snart tilbake.
What is the definite noun ending -en doing in Strømmen?
Strømmen comes from the base noun strøm (meaning “electricity,” “power,” or “stream”) plus the definite article –en (“the”). In Norwegian you attach the article to the end of the noun instead of putting the in front as in English. So strøm → strømmen = “the power.”
Why is kommer in the present tense when we’re talking about the future?
In Norwegian, the present tense is often used for near-future events if you include a time adverb like snart (“soon”). So Strømmen kommer snart tilbake literally uses present tense to communicate “The power is coming back soon.” If you wanted a clearer “will”-future you could say Strømmen vil komme tilbake (“The power will come back”).
What does snart mean and why is it placed before tilbake?
Snart is an adverb meaning “soon.” Norwegian adverbs of time typically come right after the finite verb for emphasis, but you could also move them:
- Strømmen kommer snart tilbake.
- Strømmen kommer tilbake snart.
Both are correct; the first is slightly more common in spoken Norwegian.
What does tilbake mean, and why not just say Strømmen kommer snart?
Tilbake means “back” or “again.” Saying Strømmen kommer snart means “The power is coming soon” (as if it’s arriving for the first time), whereas kommer tilbake emphasizes a return: “The power will come back.”
Is komme tilbake a phrasal verb like English “come back”?
Grammatically, it’s a verb plus an adverb rather than a bound phrasal verb, but functionally it’s very similar to English “come back.” Unlike in German, you don’t split komme and tilbake in main clauses—they stay together.
Could I use er tilbake instead of kommer tilbake?
Yes. Strømmen er snart tilbake means “The power is soon back.” It uses the verb er (“is”) to state its returned state rather than the action of returning. The nuance is minimal; both are perfectly natural.
Why is kommer in second position—what about word order?
Norwegian follows the V2 rule in main clauses: the finite verb must be the second constituent. Here the first constituent is the subject Strømmen, so the verb kommer comes next, followed by adverbs and objects.
Do I capitalize Strømmen like a proper noun?
Not because it’s a proper noun, but because it’s the first word of the sentence. In Norwegian you only capitalize the first word, names, and certain titles. If strømmen appeared mid-sentence, it would be lowercase.
Is there any difference between Strømmen (with ø) and writing it as Strommen?
Yes. ø is a distinct Norwegian vowel sound and letter. Replacing it with o changes pronunciation and is considered a spelling error. Always use ø in strøm and its forms.