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Questions & Answers about Hun sier at bilen er solgt.
What exactly does at do in this sentence, and can it be omitted?
at is the subordinating conjunction equivalent to English that. It introduces the clause bilen er solgt (“the car is sold”). In written Bokmål it’s standard to include at; in very casual speech you sometimes drop it (Hun sier bilen er solgt), but learners should keep it.
Why is it bilen er solgt and not er bilen solgt in the subordinate clause?
In an at-clause (a declarative subordinate clause), the finite verb follows the subject (S-VO). If you say er bilen solgt, you’re making a question (“is the car sold?”).
What is the grammatical construction of er solgt, and how would you translate it?
er solgt is a resultative passive with er as the auxiliary and solgt as the past participle of selge. It conveys that the car is now in a “sold” state—i.e. “has been sold” in English.
What is the infinitive and past tense of solgt, and what form is solgt here?
The verb is selge (to sell). Its preterite is solgte, and its past participle is solgt, which is used here in the passive construction er solgt.
Could you instead say bilen har blitt solgt, and if so, what’s the difference?
Yes. bilen har blitt solgt is the perfect passive, focusing on the action of selling (the event “has been sold”). bilen er solgt is a resultative passive, focusing on the current state (“the car is in the sold condition”).
Why is it bilen instead of en bil? How does the definite article work?
bil = “a car,” bilen = “the car.” Norwegian marks definiteness with a suffix: masculine/common nouns add -en in Bokmål (en bil → bilen).
If the reporting verb were in the past, how would the sentence change?
You could backshift both clauses: Hun sa at bilen var solgt (“she said that the car was sold”) or use perfect passive: Hun sa at bilen hadde blitt solgt. Note that Norwegian doesn’t require backshifting as strictly as English—you can also keep er solgt.
Why is sier in the present tense when the sale happened earlier?
sier (“says”) refers to the time of speaking—you’re reporting what she says now. It doesn’t indicate when the selling took place; that information is in er solgt.
Is a comma needed before at like in English?
No. In Norwegian you generally do not place a comma before a subordinate at-clause. Commas are used differently in Norwegian than in English.
How would you express this idea in direct speech?
In direct speech you could write: Hun sier: “Bilen er solgt.” (Or in past: Hun sa: “Bilen er solgt.”)