Breakdown of Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen.
Questions & Answers about Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen.
Skrive ned is a verb + particle combination that means “to write something down,” i.e. to record information somewhere so it won’t be forgotten.
- skrive on its own is just “to write” (the physical or mental act of writing).
- skrive ned adds the idea of making a note / recording something.
So in this sentence, skriver ned emphasizes that you are registering the appointment in the calendar, not just writing random text.
You can say Jeg skriver avtalen i kalenderen, and it is grammatically correct. Many people would still understand it as “write down,” because the context (a calendar) makes it obvious.
However:
Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen
→ clearly about recording / noting it down.Jeg skriver avtalen i kalenderen
→ sounds a bit more neutral, like you are “writing the appointment in the calendar,” but without that extra “note it down” flavor.
In everyday speech, Norwegians strongly prefer skrive ned for this meaning.
Literally, ned means “down,” but in skrive ned it mostly functions like an adverbial particle, similar to English “write down”:
- Historically/physically: writing something down on paper.
- Modern, extended use: entering it somewhere to record it (paper, phone, computer, etc.).
So yes, it’s the same idea as “down” in “write it down”, but it doesn’t require an actual downward movement; you can skrive ned something into a digital calendar as well.
Yes, you can move ned, and both versions are fine:
- Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen.
- Jeg skriver avtalen ned i kalenderen.
Both are natural. The choice is mostly about rhythm and focus, not meaning.
A few patterns to remember:
- With a noun object, both orders are ok:
- skrive ned avtalen / skrive avtalen ned
- With a pronoun object, the particle usually comes after the pronoun:
- Jeg skriver den ned. (not Jeg skriver ned den.)
In your sentence, the given word order (skriver ned avtalen) is the most common and neutral.
In Norwegian, the definite form is usually marked by a suffix:
- en avtale → avtalen (the appointment)
- en kalender → kalenderen (the calendar)
In your sentence, we are clearly talking about:
- a specific appointment that both speaker and listener know about
- a specific calendar (usually “my calendar” or “our calendar”)
That’s why Norwegian uses the definite forms avtalen and kalenderen, even though English would often say “the appointment” and “my calendar”.
You don’t need a possessive here. i kalenderen is normally understood as “in my calendar,” because context makes it obvious we’re talking about the speaker’s own calendar.
Both are correct:
Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen.
→ natural, default, usually understood as “my calendar.”Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen min.
→ adds explicit possession (“in my calendar”), used if you want to stress whose calendar it is, or to contrast it with someone else’s.
Norwegian often leaves out possessives where English would use “my,” “your,” etc., especially with body parts, close family, and obvious personal items like calendars, phones, etc.
With kalender, the normal preposition for “entering something in a calendar” is i:
- i kalenderen = in the calendar (as an entry inside the system or grid)
På kalenderen is possible, but it usually suggests something like:
- visibly on the surface (e.g. written on the front or on a specific date box as a physical place), or
- referring to the calendar more like a list or schedule:
- Hva står på kalenderen i dag? – “What’s on the calendar today?”
For “recording/entering” an appointment, you say:
- skrive (noe) inn / ned i kalenderen
Avtale is a masculine noun:
- Indefinite singular: en avtale – an appointment / an agreement
- Definite singular: avtalen – the appointment / the agreement
- Indefinite plural: avtaler – appointments / agreements
- Definite plural: avtalene – the appointments / the agreements
So your sentence uses the definite singular avtalen, because it refers to a specific appointment.
Skrive ned is absolutely fine for digital contexts as well. It’s commonly used whether you:
- write with pen and paper
- type on a keyboard
- tap on a phone
In modern usage, skrive ned basically means “record in writing,” not necessarily with a pen. If you want to be more explicitly digital, you can say things like:
- føre inn avtalen i kalenderen – enter the appointment in the calendar
- legge inn avtalen i kalenderen – put/add the appointment into the calendar
But skrive ned avtalen i kalenderen sounds natural even for a phone calendar.
Your word order is the most neutral and common:
- Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen.
Other word orders are also grammatically correct, but change emphasis:
Jeg skriver avtalen ned i kalenderen.
→ Same meaning, just a slightly different rhythm.I kalenderen skriver jeg ned avtalen.
→ Puts emphasis on i kalenderen (as opposed to somewhere else).Avtalen skriver jeg ned i kalenderen.
→ Emphasizes avtalen (this particular appointment).
For normal, unmarked speech, stick with the original order you have.
Yes, you can, and it sounds natural:
- notere (ned) = to note (down), to jot down
Subtle differences:
skrive ned
→ more general, everyday, very common in spoken language.notere (ned)
→ a bit more formal or “neat,” common in written instructions, school, office context:- Kan du notere dette i kalenderen?
In everyday speech, skrive ned is probably more frequent, but notere avtalen i kalenderen is perfectly good Norwegian.
Norwegian present tense skriver mainly describes:
- an action happening now:
- Jeg skriver ned avtalen i kalenderen (nå).
For a planned future action, you usually add something to mark the future:
- Jeg skal skrive ned avtalen i kalenderen. – I will / am going to write it down.
- Jeg skal skrive den ned i kveld. – I’ll write it down tonight.
In certain contexts, simple present can hint at future (e.g. timetables, schedules), but for a personal intention like this, you normally use skal or another future construction rather than bare skriver if you clearly mean “later.”