Jeg har knapt tid til å lese i kveld.

Word
Jeg har knapt tid til å lese i kveld.
Meaning
I barely have time to read tonight.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Hardcore Norwegian
Lesson
Lesson 37
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Questions & Answers about Jeg har knapt tid til å lese i kveld.

What exactly does "knapt" mean here?
It means hardly/barely/scarcely. It says you have very little time, but not necessarily zero. It’s a bit tighter than “almost not,” and can feel slightly more concise or neutral than “nesten ikke.” You can intensify it as knapt nok (“barely enough”): Jeg har knapt nok tid.
Where should "knapt" go in the sentence? Can I put it after "tid" or after the verb?

Put knapt right before what it limits. Here it limits the amount of tid (time), so:

  • Correct: Jeg har knapt tid til å lese i kveld.
  • Also okay (emphasis shift): Jeg har nesten ikke tid til å lese i kveld.
  • Not idiomatic: “Jeg har tid knapt til å lese …”
  • Not typical: “Jeg knapt har tid …” (sounds marked/poetic). Standard is Jeg har knapt tid.
Why is it "tid til å lese" and not "tid å lese"?
After tid you normally use til: tid til + noun/verb. With a verb, it’s tid til å + infinitive: tid til å lese. Saying “tid å lese” is ungrammatical in this meaning.
Can I say "tid for å lese" instead of "tid til å lese"?
Usually no, if you mean “having time available.” Tid til å lese means you have enough time to do it. Tid for (å) tends to mean “it is time for (doing) X” (scheduled/appropriate moment): Det er tid for å gå (“It’s time to go”). “Jeg har tid for å lese” sounds odd in this sense; say Jeg har tid til å lese.
Does "i kveld" specifically mean “tonight”? How is it different from "på/om kvelden" or "i aften"?
  • i kveld = this evening/tonight (specific, one occasion).
  • på kvelden / om kvelden = in the evening(s) (habitual/general time).
  • i aften = more formal/old-fashioned in Norway; everyday speech prefers i kveld.
Can I move "i kveld" to the front? What happens to word order?

Yes. Norwegian main clauses are verb-second (V2). If you front i kveld, the finite verb har must be second:

  • I kveld har jeg knapt tid til å lese. Fronting changes emphasis, not meaning.
What’s the difference between "Jeg har knapt tid ..." and "Jeg har ikke tid ..."?
  • Jeg har knapt tid … = I have hardly any time (maybe a tiny bit).
  • Jeg har ikke tid … = I don’t have time (none).
Could I say "Jeg har knapt med tid" or "Det er knapt med tid"?

Yes, those are idiomatic:

  • Jeg har knapt med tid.
  • Det er knapt med tid. This phrasing highlights scarcity in a general/impersonal way. With a specific activity, Jeg har knapt tid til å … is more direct.
Why is there no article before "tid"? Why not "en tid"?
Here tid is a mass noun (uncountable), so no article: (knapt) tid. En tid does exist but means “a (certain) period/era,” which is a different meaning.
Why is it "å" and not "og" before "lese"?
Å is the infinitive marker (“to read”), while og means “and.” So it must be til å lese. Quick check: if you can say “to read” in English, you want å in Norwegian.
How do you pronounce the sentence?

Approximate, in an Eastern-style pronunciation:

  • Jeg ≈ “yai” (the g is not a hard g)
  • har ≈ “hahr” (a as in “father”)
  • knapt ≈ “knahpt” (k and n both audible; p and t often pronounced)
  • tid ≈ “teed”
  • til ≈ “til”
  • å ≈ short “oh”
  • lese ≈ “LEH-seh”
  • i ≈ “ee”
  • kveld ≈ “kvel” (the d is usually silent; sounds like “kvell”) Natural rhythm: Jeg HAR knapt TID til å LEH-se i KVELD.
Is "Jeg rekker ikke å lese i kveld" a good alternative?
Yes, but it’s stronger and a bit different. å rekke means “to have enough time/manage to do (before a deadline).” So Jeg rekker ikke å lese i kveld = “I won’t manage to read tonight,” not just “I hardly have time.”
Can I use a noun instead of the verb: "tid til lesing"?
Yes: Jeg har knapt tid til lesing i kveld. It’s grammatical but more formal/abstract. The infinitive å lese sounds more natural for everyday activities.
Can I front the infinitive phrase: "Å lese i kveld har jeg knapt tid til"?
Yes. That’s a topicalization with preposition stranding, which is fine in Norwegian: Å lese i kveld har jeg knapt tid til. It sounds more formal/emphatic than the neutral order.
Is "knapt" interchangeable with "nesten ikke" or "så vidt"?

Often, but nuances differ:

  • knapt = hardly/scarcely (quantity is very small): Jeg har knapt tid.
  • nesten ikke = almost not (broad, very common): Jeg har nesten ikke tid.
  • så vidt = just barely (often about just managing): Jeg har så vidt tid. All three work here; pick the tone you want.
Is “ikveld” one word?
No. It’s two words: i kveld. Likewise: i dag, i går, i morgen are written as two words in standard Bokmål.