Lenestolen står ved vinduet, og dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.

The armchair stands by the window, and the diary always lies on the desk.

Breakdown of Lenestolen står ved vinduet, og dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.

• og: and
• på: on
• alltid: always
• vinduet: the window
• ligge: to lie
• stå: to stand
• ved: by
• dagboken: the diary
• lenestolen: the armchair
• pulten: the desk

Questions & Answers about Lenestolen står ved vinduet, og dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.

Why do we use står for the armchair and ligger for the diary, instead of just er?

Norwegian often uses specific position-verbs for where things are:

• stå – to stand (upright position)
• ligge – to lie (lying/flat position)
• sitte – to sit (sitting position)
• henge – to hang

So:

• Lenestolen står ved vinduet – The armchair is standing by the window (it’s upright on its legs).
• Dagboken ligger alltid på pulten – The diary is lying on the desk (flat on a surface).

You can say Lenestolen er ved vinduet and Dagboken er på pulten, and people will understand you. It’s grammatically correct, but it sounds less natural and less specific. Native speakers strongly prefer stå/ligge/sitte/henge for the location of objects when the position is clear.

Can I always choose between er, står, and ligger, or are there rules?

There is some choice, but there are tendencies:

1. Physical objects with a clear position

   • Use står for things that normally stand: stoler, flasker, lamper.
   • Use ligger for things that lie: bøker, klær, papir.
   • Use sitter for people and animals sitting: Gutten sitter ved vinduet.

2. When the position is unknown or irrelevant

   • Then er is normal: Bagen er på rommet (you don’t care if it’s standing or lying).

3. Fixed expressions

   • Some phrases prefer one verb:
     
     • Det står i avisen (It says in the newspaper).
     • Byen ligger ved kysten (The town is located by the coast).

In your sentence, an armchair very naturally står, and a diary on a desk very naturally ligger, so those are the most idiomatic choices.

Why is alltid after ligger? Could I say Dagboken alltid ligger på pulten?

In main clauses, Norwegian has verb in second position (the V2 rule). After the subject, the verb must come next:

• Dagboken (subject) ligger (verb) alltid (adverb) på pulten (rest).

So the normal order is:

Dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.

Dagboken alltid ligger på pulten breaks the V2 rule, so it is wrong in a main clause.

If you move something in front, the verb still has to be second:

• Alltid ligger dagboken på pulten. (emphasis on always)
  Here alltid is in first place, ligger is still the second element.

Where else can I put alltid in this sentence?

The most natural version is the one you have:

• Dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.

Possible (but more marked) alternatives:

• Alltid ligger dagboken på pulten. – Very strong emphasis on always; bookish/literary or used for contrast.
• Dagboken ligger på pulten alltid. – Grammatically possible, but sounds unusual in Norwegian; adverbs like alltid normally come right after the verb (when there is no auxiliary).

If there were an auxiliary verb, alltid would usually go after the auxiliary:

• Dagboken har alltid ligget på pulten.

Why is it ved vinduet and not something like nær vinduet or ved siden av vinduet?

All three are possible but have slightly different nuances:

• ved vinduet – by the window, right next to it (very common and neutral).
• nær vinduet – near the window, somewhere close, but not necessarily directly at it.
• ved siden av vinduet – beside the window, at the side of it.

In most cases where English says by the window, Norwegian prefers ved vinduet. It’s compact, idiomatic, and gives the idea of being right at the window area.

Why do we say ved vinduet (definite) and not ved vindu?

Norwegian typically uses the definite form when you and the listener both know which object you are talking about, or when it’s a unique, specific thing in that context:

• ved vinduet = by the window (the one in this room, a specific window).
• ved et vindu = by a window (not a specific one).

In a typical room context, there is a particular window you mean, so vinduet is natural. Using the bare stem ved vindu is not idiomatic in standard Norwegian; you would use either ved vinduet or ved et vindu depending on definiteness.

Why is it på pulten and not i pulten or ved pulten?

The preposition changes the meaning:

• på pulten – on the desk (lying on top of the surface).
• i pulten – in the desk (inside a drawer or compartment).
• ved pulten – by the desk (next to it, not on it).

Since the diary is on the top surface, på pulten is the correct and natural choice.

What are the genders and definite forms of lenestolen, dagboken, pulten, and vinduet?

Here are the basic forms (Bokmål):

1. lenestol (armchair) – masculine

   • indefinite singular: en lenestol
   • definite singular: lenestolen
   • indefinite plural: lenestoler
   • definite plural: lenestolene

2. dagbok (diary) – common gender (treated like masculine in Bokmål)

   • en dagbok
   • dagboken (or dagboka, see next question)
   • dagbøker
   • dagbøkene

3. pult (school desk) – masculine

   • en pult
   • pulten
   • pulter
   • pultene

4. vindu (window) – neuter

   • et vindu
   • vinduet
   • vinduer
   • vinduene

So in your sentence, all the nouns are in the definite singular: lenestolen, vinduet, dagboken, pulten.

Why dagboken and not dagboka?

Both forms exist in Bokmål:

• dagboken – more traditional, formal/written style.
• dagboka – more colloquial and closer to many spoken dialects (and to Nynorsk patterns).

The sentence:

• Dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.
  and
• Dagboka ligger alltid på pulten.

mean the same thing. Choice of -en vs -a is mostly about style, personal preference, and sometimes dialect. Many learners are first taught the -en forms.

Is the comma before og necessary in …, og dagboken ligger alltid på pulten?

Norwegian comma rules say you usually put a comma between two main clauses that each have their own subject and verb, even if they are joined by og:

• Lenestolen står ved vinduet, og dagboken ligger alltid på pulten.
  
  • Clause 1: Lenestolen står ved vinduet
  • Clause 2: dagboken ligger alltid på pulten

So the comma is correct and recommended.

In informal writing, some people might omit it in short sentences, but in standard written Norwegian you should keep the comma here.

Can I change the word order to Ved vinduet står lenestolen?

Yes, that is correct Norwegian:

• Lenestolen står ved vinduet. (neutral word order)
• Ved vinduet står lenestolen. (slightly more focus on the location)

Norwegian allows you to move an adverbial (like ved vinduet) to the front, but the verb must still be in second position:

1. Ved vinduet – first element
2. står – verb
3. lenestolen – subject

Both versions are fine; the original is the most neutral in everyday speech.

Why is lenestol one word in Norwegian and not two words like English “arm chair”?

Norwegian very often forms compound nouns by writing the elements together:

• lenestol = lene (to lean) + stol (chair) → a chair you lean back in.
• Other examples:
  • skrivebord (writing table, desk)
  • sollys (sunlight)
  • hovedstad (capital city)

So lenestol must be written as one word. Writing lene stol would be wrong and change the meaning.