Vaktene advarer oss om glatte veier.

The guards warn us about slippery roads.

Breakdown of Vaktene advarer oss om glatte veier.

• om: about
• oss: us
• veien: the road
• vakten: the guard
• glatt: slippery
• advare: to warn

Questions & Answers about Vaktene advarer oss om glatte veier.

Why is vaktene used instead of something like vakter?

Vaktene is the definite plural form of vakt (“guard”). Norwegian nouns have both indefinite and definite forms.

• Indefinite plural: vakter (“guards” in general)
• Definite plural: add -ene → vaktene (“the guards”)

What is the verb advarer, and how is it conjugated?

Advarer is the present tense of advare (“to warn”). Its regular conjugation is:

• Infinitive: å advare
• Present: advarer (jeg advarer)
• Past: advarte (jeg advarte)
• Perfect: har advart (jeg har advart)

Why is the preposition om used after advarer?

In Norwegian, the verb advare often takes om to mean “warn about.” The pattern is:
​ advare noen om noe → “to warn someone about something.”
So advarer oss om glatte veier literally “warns us about slippery roads.”

Why does glatte have an -e ending?

Adjectives agree with the noun’s number and definiteness. Here veier (“roads”) is indefinite plural, so the attributive adjective adds -e:
​ glatt + -e → glatte veier (“slippery roads”)
By contrast, indefinite singular would be glatt vei.

Why is there no article before glatte veier (“slippery roads”)?

Because glatte veier is indefinite plural. Norwegian indefinite plurals do not use an article. If you wanted “the slippery roads,” you’d say de glatte veiene, adding both the definite article de and the suffix -ene to veier.

What is the word order in Vaktene advarer oss om glatte veier?

Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 (verb-second) rule. The order is:

1. Subject: Vaktene
2. Finite verb: advarer
3. Direct object: oss
4. Prepositional object: om glatte veier

Can oss (“us”) be replaced by a noun?

Yes. Oss is the object pronoun for “us.” You could substitute any object, for example:
​ Vaktene advarer bilistene om glatte veier
(“The guards warn the motorists about slippery roads.”)

How would you say this sentence in the past tense?

Use the past form advarte instead of advarer:
​ Vaktene advarte oss om glatte veier
(“The guards warned us about slippery roads.”)