Sign inSign up

Hva er din mening om filmen?

Hva er din mening om filmen?
What is your opinion about the movie?
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Norwegian grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Norwegian now

Questions & Answers about Hva er din mening om filmen?

Is this the most natural way to ask for someone’s opinion?
Hva er din mening om filmen? is perfectly correct and a bit formal/neutral. In everyday speech, Norwegians more often say Hva synes du om filmen? (or the shorter Hva syns du om filmen?). You can also hear Hva mener du om filmen? when asking for a more reasoned stance.
What’s the difference between synes, mener, and tror?
  • synes: subjective impression/feeling. Example: Jeg synes den er bra.
  • mener: considered opinion/argument. Example: Jeg mener filmen er for lang.
  • tror: belief about uncertain facts/guesses. Example: Jeg tror filmen varer to timer. You don’t use tror for opinions about quality.
Why is it din and not ditt, di, or dine?

Because the possessive agrees with the noun it modifies. mening is feminine in Bokmål but is commonly treated as common gender; with preposed possessives most people use the common-gender form din: din mening.

  • ditt is for neuter nouns: ditt inntrykk.
  • dine is for plurals: dine meninger.
  • You may see the feminine form di in Bokmål or dialects: di mening, but din mening is more standard.
Can I put the possessive after the noun: Hva er meningen din om filmen?
Yes. Postposed possessive is very common and sounds a bit more colloquial. When you move the possessive after the noun, the noun takes the definite ending: meningen din. Both Hva er din mening om filmen? and Hva er meningen din om filmen? are fine.
Why is it filmen and not film?

filmen is the definite form, meaning a particular film both speakers know about (for example, the one you just watched). film without the ending is indefinite and would mean films in general. Compare:

  • Hva er din mening om filmen? about a specific movie.
  • Hva er din mening om film? about the medium in general (uncommon wording; you’d more likely say om filmer).
Why do we use om here? Could I use på, over, or angående?

With opinions about a topic, Norwegian uses om (about): mening om noe, synes om noe.

  • på and over are wrong in this context.
  • angående is possible but very formal: Hva er din mening angående filmen?
  • rundt can appear in phrases like diskusjonen rundt filmen, but not with mening.
Why is the word order Hva er ... and not Hva din mening er ...?

Main-clause questions in Norwegian follow the V2 rule: the finite verb is the second element. Hva is first, er is second: Hva er din mening ....
Hva din mening er ... has subordinate-clause word order and must be embedded, for example: Jeg lurer på hva din mening er om filmen.

How do I pronounce the sentence?
  • Hva: the h is silent; sounds like va.
  • er: like air with a tapped r.
  • din: deen.
  • mening: MEH-ning; long e in the first syllable; final ng like in English sing.
  • om: short o, like British off.
  • filmen: FIL-men.
    Wh-questions usually have a falling intonation at the end in Norwegian.
Is there a difference between Bokmål and Nynorsk here?
Yes. In Nynorsk you would typically write Kva er di meining om filmen? (Nynorsk uses kva, the feminine di, and meining). The everyday alternative is Kva synest du om filmen?
How do I address a group or be polite?
  • To ask several people: Hva er deres mening om filmen?
  • The old polite singular Deres (capital D) exists but is rarely used today. Norway generally uses du/din even with strangers.
Should it be present (er) or past (var)?

Use er for a current opinion: Hva er din mening om filmen?
Use var to ask about what someone thought at an earlier time: Hva var din mening om filmen da den kom ut? In practice, people ask in the present even right after watching.

Can I drop the om filmen part if it’s obvious from context?
Yes. If the topic is clear, you can simply ask Hva synes du? or Hva er din mening? Context will supply what you’re referring to.
Does mening also mean meaning? Could this sentence be confused with that?

mening can mean both opinion and meaning/purpose.

  • Hva er din mening om filmen? asks for your opinion.
  • Hva er meningen med filmen? asks about the film’s meaning or purpose. Note the different preposition: om (about) vs med (with/of).
Is syns okay instead of synes?
Yes. syns is a shorter, very common spelling of synes in Bokmål. Both are accepted: Hva synes du om filmen? / Hva syns du om filmen?
How would I ask about someone’s opinions (plural)?

You can say Hva er dine meninger om filmen?, but it can sound heavy. More natural is to ask for specifics:

  • Hva likte du, og hva likte du ikke?
  • Hva tenker du om skuespillet, musikken og historien?