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Du må si det tydelig.

Du må si det tydelig.
You must say it clearly.
FromLesson 21inHardcore Norwegian
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Breakdown of Du må si det tydelig.

du
you
det
it
måtte
must
si
to say
tydelig
clear
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Questions & Answers about Du må si det tydelig.

What does må mean in Du må si det tydelig?
må is the present form of å måtte, which means must or have to. It’s a modal verb expressing necessity. So Du må si… translates to “You have to say…” or “You must say…”.
Why isn’t there an å before si?
After a modal verb (like må, kan, vil, skal), the main verb is used in its bare infinitive form—no å. That’s why you say må si instead of må å si.
What part of speech is tydelig here—adjective or adverb?
Here tydelig functions as an adverb, meaning clearly. In Norwegian, many words share the same form for adjective and adverb. When it tells how you say something, it’s adverbial.
Why is tydelig placed at the end of the sentence?

The normal word order with a modal verb is:
Subject – Modal Verb – Main Verb – Object – Adverb
So you get:
Du (subject) må (modal) si (verb) det (object) tydelig (adverb).

Can I use a different adverb instead of tydelig?
Yes. You could say Du må si det klart, where klart also means clearly. Slight nuance: tydelig often stresses clarity of expression or meaning.
What exactly does det refer to?
det is the neuter singular object pronoun “it”. It stands in for whatever content you’re telling someone to say clearly—e.g., a phrase, instruction, word, etc.
How would I turn this into a question?

Invert the modal verb and the subject:
Må du si det tydelig?
That means “Do you have to say it clearly?” or “Must you say it clearly?”.

What’s the pronunciation of tydelig?

Roughly [TYE-deh-lig]:

  • y like German “ü”
  • d soft, almost like an English “th” in “this”
  • final g is light (some dialects pronounce it almost like ch)
    Stress falls on the first syllable: TYE.
Could I drop du and just say Må si det tydelig?
Standard Norwegian usually requires the subject in declarative sentences, so Du må si det tydelig is correct. In very casual speech, you might hear someone omit du, but grammatically you keep it.
How would you give it as an imperative (a direct command)?

Use the bare verb form at the start:
Si det tydelig!
That means “Say it clearly!” and sounds more like a direct command than Du må….