Kunden er misfornøyd når leveringen kommer for sent.

The customer is dissatisfied when the delivery arrives too late.

Breakdown of Kunden er misfornøyd når leveringen kommer for sent.

• være: to be
• når: when
• komme: to arrive
• for sent: too late

Questions & Answers about Kunden er misfornøyd når leveringen kommer for sent.

Why do both kunden and leveringen end in -en? Are they definite?

Yes. kunde = customer (indefinite), kunden = the customer (definite). levering = delivery (indefinite), leveringen = the delivery (definite). The -en ending marks the definite singular for common-gender nouns in Bokmål.

If it’s definite, how can this sentence sound generic (like “customers are unhappy when deliveries are late”)?

Norwegian often uses definite singular generically to talk about a type or role, especially in rules/policies: Kunden er misfornøyd når … ≈ “The customer is (in general) unhappy when …”. You can also express the generic idea with plural:

• Kundene er misfornøyde når leveringen kommer for sent. (The customers are unhappy …)

Could I move the når-clause to the front?

Yes: Når leveringen kommer for sent, er kunden misfornøyd. Note the comma after the fronted subordinate clause, and the main clause keeps verb-second word order (er in second position).

Why is it når leveringen kommer and not når kommer leveringen?

In subordinate clauses introduced by når, Norwegian uses subject–verb order (SV), not verb-second (V2). So it’s [når] + [subject] + [verb]: når leveringen kommer. V2 applies in main clauses.