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Jeg støvsuger stuen mens barna leker.

Jeg støvsuger stuen mens barna leker.
I vacuum the living room while the children play.
FromLesson 31inHardcore Norwegian

Questions & Answers about Jeg støvsuger stuen mens barna leker.

Why is the simple present støvsuger used when English would say “am vacuuming”?

Norwegian doesn’t have a separate present continuous tense. The simple present covers both “I vacuum” and “I am vacuuming.” If you want to emphasize “right now,” you can say:

  • Jeg holder på å støvsuge (nå).
  • Jeg er i ferd med å støvsuge.
What does mens do to the clause that follows it?
Mens is a subordinating conjunction meaning “while” (simultaneous actions, sometimes “whereas” for contrast). The clause after mens is a subordinate clause with normal subject–verb order: barna leker (subject before verb). You do not invert to verb–subject there.
Can I use når or da instead of mens?
  • mens = “while,” focusing on two things happening at the same time.
  • når = “when” (general time, present/future, or habitual past).
  • da = “when” for a single, specific event in the past. Here, mens is the natural choice to express simultaneity now.
Do I need a comma before mens?

Not in a short sentence like this. Both are seen:

  • Jeg støvsuger stuen mens barna leker. (very common)
  • Jeg støvsuger stuen, mens barna leker. (comma added for a pause/clarity, more likely in longer sentences or certain style guides)
Why is it stuen and not stue?

Norwegian marks definiteness with a suffix. stue = “living room”; stuen = “the living room.” Forms:

  • Indefinite singular: (en) stue
  • Definite singular: stuen
  • Indefinite plural: stuer
  • Definite plural: stuene
What’s the difference between stuen and stua?

Both are correct Bokmål definite forms. stuen is the -en form (more neutral/formal), stua is the -a form (more colloquial). You’ll also see:

  • en stue – stuen or en/ei stue – stua Try to be consistent in a given text.
Why is it støvsuger stuen and not støvsuger i stuen?
  • støvsuge stuen = vacuum the living room (the room is the direct object being cleaned).
  • støvsuge i stuen = vacuum in the living room (that’s where the activity happens, but you might be vacuuming something else there, like a rug).
Why barna and not barnene?

barn is a neuter noun with an irregular plural. Its forms are:

  • Singular: et barn – barnet
  • Plural: barn – barna So the definite plural is barna (not “barnene”).
Does leker mean “plays” or “toys”?

Both exist:

  • Verb: å leke (to play) → barna leker = “the children are playing.”
  • Noun: en leke (a toy) → plural leker = “toys.” Context decides: after a subject with no article and followed by no noun, leker is almost certainly the verb.
Why leker and not spiller?
  • å leke = play in the general/child’s sense, play with toys, imaginative play.
  • å spille = play structured games/sports/instruments (e.g., spille fotball, spille piano). Children “play” = leker; children “play soccer” = spiller fotball.
How do you conjugate å støvsuge?
What happens if I put the mens-clause first?

You get inversion (V2) in the main clause:

  • Mens barna leker, støvsuger jeg stuen. Subordinate clause first, then verb–subject in the main clause.
Where does ikke go in sentences like this?
  • In a main clause, ikke comes after the conjugated verb: Jeg støvsuger ikke stuen …
  • In a subordinate clause, ikke comes before the verb: … mens barna ikke leker. Don’t say “Jeg ikke støvsuger …”
How do I pronounce the tricky bits?
  • jeg ≈ “yai”/“jai” (common variants).
  • ø in støv: rounded vowel like French “eu.”
  • u in suger: like German “ü.”
  • g in suger is hard (like “go”).
  • Stress: STØV-suger, STU-en.
Is støvsuger also a noun?
Yes. Besides being the present tense of the verb støvsuge, en støvsuger is “a vacuum cleaner.” The word is a compound: støv (dust) + suge (suck).
Is mens at correct?
No. Use just mens. Mens at is not standard Norwegian.
Can I say barna leker seg?
You’ll hear it in some dialects, but standard written Bokmål normally uses barna leker without seg for “the children are playing.”
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