Breakdown of Å trene hver dag kan føre til bedre helse.
å
to
kunne
can
hver
every
dagen
the day
bedre
better
trene
to exercise
helsen
the health
føre til
to lead to
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Questions & Answers about Å trene hver dag kan føre til bedre helse.
What does Å trene mean, and why is Å used here?
Å trene literally means “to train” or “to work out.” In Norwegian, Å is the infinitive marker (equivalent to English “to” before a verb). Whenever you use a bare infinitive as a noun-like subject or object, you keep Å in front of it. For example:
- Å trene gir energi. (Working out gives energy.)
- Jeg liker å trene. (I like to work out.)
Why is it hver dag instead of “all days” or using an article?
Hver dag means “every day.” In Norwegian:
- hver is used before a singular noun to mean “each” or “every.”
- You don’t need an article (en/ei) because you’re not talking about one specific day, but about each instance in an ongoing series. Compare:
- hver dag – every single day
- alle dager – all days (e.g. all the days of the year)
What role does kan play in this sentence?
Kan is a modal verb meaning “can” or “may.” It expresses possibility or potential. Here it softens the statement, saying that training every day can lead to better health, not that it definitely will.
Why is there a til after føre, and what does føre til mean together?
Føre til is a two-word verb meaning “lead to” or “result in.” The structure is:
- føre – to bring or carry
- til – to Together they form the causal phrasal verb “to lead to.” You treat it as a single unit:
- Å spise sunt fører til bedre helse.
- Å trene hver dag kan føre til bedre helse.
Why is it bedre helse with no article or ending on bedre?
- Helse (health) is an abstract, uncountable noun here, so no article (en/ei) is needed.
- Bedre is the comparative form of both bra (good) and god (good). In comparatives, Norwegian adjectives do not take gender or number endings. So you always use bedre:
- god → bedre
- bra → bedre
Could you add an article, like en bedre helse?
Typically no, because “health” in this context is general and uncountable. Adding en (“a”) would make it sound like one specific instance or type of health, which feels unnatural in Norwegian. You want the broad idea of “better health” as an uncountable concept.
Can you invert the sentence, for example: Kan føre til bedre helse å trene hver dag?
No, that inversion breaks normal Norwegian word order. The standard order for an infinitive clause as subject is:
- [Infinitive clause] + [modal] + [main verb] + …
So Å trene hver dag kan føre til bedre helse is correct. If you invert the modal, you must introduce a question: - Kan å trene hver dag føre til bedre helse? (Can working out every day lead to better health?)