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Questions & Answers about Været er dramatisk i kveld.
Why is været used in the definite form with -et?
In Norwegian, the noun for weather is vær (neuter). To express the weather, you add the definite suffix -et, giving været. Norwegian does not use separate articles like English the, but attaches them to the noun.
I often see sentences like det er kaldt for saying it is cold. Why is there no det in været er dramatisk i kveld?
det acts as a placeholder subject when no specific subject is mentioned. In det er kaldt, det introduces the idea that it is cold. However, in været er dramatisk i kveld, været is the real subject, so det is omitted.
How do I pronounce the letter æ in været?
The æ in Norwegian sounds like the a in the English word cat. So væ is pronounced veh with a short e sound, and været overall is something like VAIR-et ([ˈværət] in IPA).
Why is dramatisk not given an ending like -t or -e?
When an adjective follows a linking verb such as er, it remains in its base (predicative) form and does not take additional endings, regardless of the gender or number of the noun it describes.
Why is the preposition i used in i kveld, and does i kveld always mean tonight?
Time expressions for parts of the day (morning, afternoon, evening) use i plus the time of day in Norwegian. i kveld literally means in the evening, but is commonly used to mean tonight.
What happens if I start the sentence with i kveld? Do I need to change the word order?
Norwegian follows the V2 rule (verb-second). If you put i kveld at the beginning, the main verb must be the second element. So instead of været er dramatisk i kveld, you say i kveld er været dramatisk.
How do I turn this statement into a question?
Invert the verb and subject to form a yes/no question. Move er to the front: Er været dramatisk i kveld?
Is dramatisk a loanword from English, and does it have the same meaning?
dramatisk shares the same Latin root as English dramatic. It carries a very similar sense of something intense or striking. In this context it describes weather that is unusually severe or spectacular.