Breakdown of Øvelsen avsluttes med en liten overraskelse fra treneren.
en
a
liten
small
med
with
fra
from
øvelsen
the exercise
overraskelsen
the surprise
avslutte
to end
treneren
the coach
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Norwegian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Øvelsen avsluttes med en liten overraskelse fra treneren.
What does the suffix -en in Øvelsen signify?
It’s the definite singular ending for a common-gender noun.
øvelse (an exercise) → øvelsen (the exercise).
What form is avsluttes, and how is it formed?
It’s the present-tense passive of avslutte (to conclude). In Norwegian you can form the passive morphologically by adding -s or -es to the infinitive:
avslutte → avsluttes.
Could I use a periphrastic passive instead of the - s passive here?
Yes. You could say:
Øvelsen blir avsluttet med en liten overraskelse fra treneren
(“The exercise is being concluded with a small surprise from the coach.”)
Or use er avsluttet for “is concluded” as a state.
Why is the coach introduced by fra in fra treneren instead of av?
Here fra treneren (“from the coach”) marks the origin of the surprise. av marks the agent in a passive clause (e.g. Øvelsen avsluttes av treneren), but that phrasing doesn’t express “ends with a surprise.”
Why is med used in avsluttes med en liten overraskelse?
med means “with,” indicating what accompanies the ending. It’s like saying “The exercise ends with a small surprise.”
Why is the adjective liten not lite here?
overraskelse is a common-gender (en-word) noun. The indefinite form takes the strong adjective liten (no –t). If it were a neuter noun (et-word), you’d use lite.
Can this sentence be turned into active voice?
Yes. You can say:
Treneren avslutter øvelsen med en liten overraskelse.
(“The coach concludes the exercise with a small surprise.”)