Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Når støynivået stiger, tar vaktene ansvar og ber DJ-en dempe musikken. - When the noise level rises, the guards take responsibility and ask the DJ to lower the music.

Når here means “when” or “whenever” in the sense of a recurring situation. You use da only for a single past event (“when that happened”) and hvis for a hypothetical “if.” Since the sentence describes what the guards always do once the noise level rises, når is the correct choice.

How is støynivået formed, and why does it have -et at the end?

Støynivået is a compound of støy (noise) + nivå (level). In Norwegian, nivå is a neuter noun, so to make it definite singular you add -et, giving nivået. When you form a compound, you only inflect the last element, so støy + nivå → støynivå, and then støynivå + -et → støynivået (“the noise level”).

Why is there a comma after stiger?

Whenever a subordinate clause (introduced by når, fordi, etc.) comes before the main clause, Norwegian punctuation normally places a comma between them. It helps signal that the first part is the “when”-clause and the second is the main action.

Why is the word order tar vaktene ansvar instead of vaktene tar ansvar?

Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 (verb-second) rule. Because the sentence begins with the subordinate clause Når støynivået stiger, the main clause must start with its finite verb in first position, then the subject: tar vaktene. If you began with the subject, you would have vaktene tar ansvar, but then you wouldn’t have the subordinate clause in front.

Why isn’t vaktene repeated before ber DJ-en dempe musikken?

We have two coordinated verbs (tar ansvar and ber DJ-en dempe musikken) sharing the same subject (vaktene). In Norwegian (as in English) you can omit the repeated subject in the second part when it’s clear it’s the same actor.

How is DJ-en formed, and why the hyphen?

Acronyms or initialisms like DJ take the regular definite suffix (-en) but are linked with a hyphen for clarity: DJ-en means “the DJ.” Without the hyphen it can be harder to parse where the acronym ends and the ending begins.

Why is there no å before dempe in ber DJ-en dempe musikken?

After verbs like be (“to ask”), Norwegian lets you use a bare infinitive without å when you tell someone to do something. So instead of ber … å dempe, you say ber … dempe.

What does dempe mean here, and are there alternative ways to say “turn down the volume”?

Dempe means “to turn down,” “dampen,” or “reduce” (in this context, volume). You could also say skru ned lyden, dempe volumet, or skru volumet ned. All convey “lower the music,” though dempe musikken is a concise, common phrasing.

Why is musikken in the definite form rather than just musikk?

They refer to the specific music being played right then. In Norwegian, you use -en to mark the definite singular. So musikk = “music” in general, musikken = “the music” (the one the DJ is playing).