Questions & Answers about Heisen er langsom i dag.
Norwegian marks the definite article by adding a suffix to the noun. heis = elevator/lift (indefinite), and heisen = the elevator/lift (definite). You use the definite form when the referent is specific or contextually known (e.g., the building’s elevator).
Useful forms:
- Singular: en heis (a(n) elevator), heisen (the elevator)
- Plural: heiser (elevators), heisene (the elevators)
With an adjective before a definite noun, Norwegian uses “double definiteness”: den langsomme heisen (the slow elevator). In your sentence, the adjective is not before the noun, so no extra determiner is needed.
Because the adjective is used predicatively (after er). Predicative adjectives agree like this:
- Singular common gender: langsom (e.g., Heisen er langsom.)
- Singular neuter: langsomt (e.g., Toget er langsomt.)
- Plural (all genders): langsomme (e.g., Heisene er langsomme.)
Attributive (before a noun) looks like:
- en langsom heis
- et langsomt tog
- langsomme heiser
- den langsomme heisen
Generally no. sakte is mainly an adverb (slowly), while langsom is an adjective (slow). After er, you need an adjective: Heisen er langsom i dag or Heisen er treg i dag.
Use sakte with a verb:
- Heisen går sakte i dag.
- Also fine (a bit more formal/old-fashioned): Heisen går langsomt i dag.
Common, natural options:
- Heisen er langsom i dag.
- I dag er heisen langsom. (fronted time phrase; verb still in second position = V2)
Less common/more formal:
- Heisen er i dag langsom.
Avoid: I dag heisen er langsom (breaks the V2 rule).
i is the preposition in, but i dag is the fixed way to say today. It’s written as two words: i dag (not idag). Similar time phrases:
- i går = yesterday
- i morgen = tomorrow
- langsom: slow (neutral, general speed).
- treg/treig: sluggish/slow to respond; common with machines, systems, or people’s reactions. Both spellings are accepted; treg is more standard, treig is dialect-influenced.
- sen/sein: late (not slow). Don’t use this to mean slow.
Examples:
- Heisen er langsom i dag.
- Heisen er treg i dag.
- Han er sen i dag. (He is late today.)
- Comparative: langsommere
- Superlative (predicative): langsomst
- Superlative (attributive): den langsomste
Examples:
- Heisen er langsommere enn vanlig i dag.
- Dette er den langsomste heisen i bygget.
With adverbs/verbs you can use:
- Heisen går saktere enn i går. (adverb of sakte) Alternate with treg:
- Heisen er tregere enn vanlig.
- Heisen: The ei is like the vowel in English “eye.” Two syllables: HEI-sen. The second syllable has a reduced vowel.
- er: Short, like English “air” without the diphthong; a clipped e + r.
- langsom: The ngs cluster is pronounced as ŋs (the g isn’t a separate sound). Sounds like “LAHNG-som.”
- i: Long “ee.”
- dag: “daag.” The final g is often weak or silent in many accents.
Natural rhythm: stress the first syllables of HEI-sen and LANG-som; i dag is typically unstressed at the end.
er (is) states a current condition. Alternatives change the nuance:
- Heisen går sakte i dag. (focus on how it runs/operates)
- Heisen fungerer tregt i dag. (it functions sluggishly)
- Heisen blir treg i dag. would mean it becomes slow today (a change of state), which is usually not what you want here.
- Past (preterite): Heisen var langsom i morges. (was slow this morning)
- Present perfect: Heisen har vært langsom i dag. (has been slow today, possibly not anymore)
Verb forms of å være (to be):
- Present: er
- Preterite: var
- Past participle (with har): vært
Place ikke after the verb:
- Heisen er ikke langsom i dag. If you front the time phrase:
- I dag er ikke heisen langsom.
heis is common gender (often called masculine in Bokmål). Forms:
- Indefinite singular: en heis
- Definite singular: heisen
- Indefinite plural: heiser
- Definite plural: heisene