Breakdown of Sjampoen lukter godt, og jeg grer håret med en ny kam.
jeg
I
en
a
med
with
og
and
god
good
ny
new
lukte
to smell
sjampoen
the shampoo
håret
the hair
gre
to comb
kammen
the comb
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Questions & Answers about Sjampoen lukter godt, og jeg grer håret med en ny kam.
Why is it Sjampoen and not just sjampo?
Because the noun is in the definite singular. In Bokmål, most masculine nouns take the suffix -en in the definite:
- Indefinite: en sjampo (a shampoo)
- Definite: sjampoen (the shampoo)
Note: Norwegian nouns are not capitalized in general; Sjampoen is capitalized here only because it starts the sentence. The modern recommended spelling is sjampo (older/alternative: shampo).
Why is it lukter godt and not lukter god?
After sensory verbs like lukter (smells) and smaker (tastes), Norwegian typically uses godt. Here godt functions adverbially (roughly “well”), even though it looks like the neuter form of the adjective god. Common pairs:
- lukter godt = smells good
- smaker godt = tastes good
- Opposite: lukter vondt / smaker vondt = smells/tastes bad
What exactly does lukter mean, and are there different constructions?
Å lukte can mean:
- To emit a smell: Sjampoen lukter godt.
- To perceive a smell (sniff): Jeg lukter på blomsten. (I smell/sniff the flower.)
- To smell of something: Det lukter av sjampo. or Det lukter sjampo. (It smells of shampoo.)
Is the comma before og necessary here?
Yes, it’s standard here. You have two independent main clauses with different subjects:
- Clause 1: Sjampoen lukter godt
- Clause 2: jeg grer håret med en ny kam A comma before og is expected when coordinating two full main clauses. You would not use a comma when og simply links two sentence elements (e.g., “Jeg kjøper sjampo og såpe.”).
Why is it jeg grer håret instead of jeg grer meg?
Both are possible:
- Jeg grer håret explicitly names the object (the hair).
- Jeg grer meg is reflexive and idiomatic for “I comb my hair.” It’s common in everyday speech. You generally don’t say jeg grer mitt hår unless you want to emphasize possession; the neutral choice is either håret or meg.
Why is håret in the definite form, and do I need mitt?
Body parts are often definite with no possessive when the possessor is clear from the subject:
- Jeg grer håret. (not “my hair” explicitly) If you add a possessive, Norwegian prefers the postposed pattern:
- Jeg grer håret mitt. Using the bare possessive before the noun (mitt hår) is possible but less common and can sound more contrastive or stylistic.
What are the principal forms of the verb å gre?
- Infinitive: å gre (to comb)
- Present: grer
- Preterite (past): gredde
- Past participle: gredd Examples: I går gredde jeg håret. / Jeg har gredd håret.
Why is it en ny kam and not et nytt kam?
Because kam (comb) is a masculine noun. The forms are:
- Indefinite: en kam
- Definite: kammen
- With adjective (indefinite masculine): en ny kam
- With adjective (definite): den nye kammen For reference, the adjective ny inflects as: masculine ny, neuter nytt, plural/definite nye.
Can I move med en ny kam earlier, like “Jeg grer med en ny kam håret”?
No. The neutral order is Subject–Verb–Object–(other information). So:
- Neutral: Jeg grer håret med en ny kam. Fronting the prepositional phrase for emphasis is fine, but the object still follows the verb:
- Med en ny kam grer jeg håret. “Jeg grer med en ny kam håret” is unidiomatic.
Why is it og and not å?
- og = and (coordinating conjunction)
- å = to (the infinitive marker) Here you’re linking two clauses, so you need og. Use å only before an infinitive (e.g., å gre).
How do you pronounce key words like sjampoen, lukter, grer, håret, kam?
- sjampoen: The sj is a “sh”-like sound produced further back; the ending is two syllables: “sham-po-en.”
- lukter: Roughly “LUK-ter,” short u as in “look.”
- grer: Like “grehr” (one syllable). The r can be trilled (tip of tongue) or uvular (back of throat), depending on dialect.
- håret: “HOH-reht.” å like the vowel in “law”; final -et is a light schwa in many dialects.
- kam: Like English “come” with a short a as in “father,” not “cup.”
Is kam the right word here? What about børste?
- en kam = a comb (teeth, used to detangle/part hair).
- en børste = a brush (bristles). You gre håret with a kam; you børster håret with a børste. Both are common, depending on the tool.
Is sjampo countable or uncountable in Norwegian?
Both, depending on meaning:
- Mass/uncountable (the substance): Det er sjampo i håret.
- Countable (a bottle/type/brand): en sjampo, to sjampoer (two shampoos).