Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet. - The tram is often full, but the subway is empty at the stop near the crosswalk.

Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet.

The tram is often full, but the subway is empty at the stop near the crosswalk.

Breakdown of Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet.

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Questions & Answers about Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet.

Why is it trikken, stoppet, and gangfeltet instead of using a separate word for the, like in English?

Norwegian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun, as a suffix, instead of using a separate word like the.

Here are the forms in this sentence:

en trikk = a tram → trikken = the tram
et stopp = a stop → stoppet = the stop
et gangfelt = a crosswalk → gangfeltet = the crosswalk

So:

Trikken er ofte full = The tram is often full
ved stoppet = at/by the stop
nær gangfeltet = near the crosswalk

In short: when you see -en, -et, or -a attached to a noun, it usually means the in English.

What is the difference between trikken and T-banen?

They are two different types of public transport:

trikken = the tram / streetcar
- Runs on tracks in the streets, often mixed with other traffic.
T-banen = the metro / subway (in Oslo)
- An urban rail system, partly underground and partly above ground.
- The T comes from tunnelbane (tunnel railway).

So the sentence is contrasting two systems:

Trikken er ofte full = The tram is often crowded.
men T-banen er tom = but the metro is empty.

Why is there a hyphen in T-banen, and why is the T capitalized?

T-bane is built from a single letter plus a noun:

T (letter, from tunnelbane) + bane (line/track) → T-bane
In the definite form: T-banen (the metro)

Norwegian usually adds a hyphen when you combine a single letter with another word:

T-bane, E-post (email), A4-ark (A4 sheet)

The T is capitalized because it’s an abbreviation/letter name. bane(n) itself is not a proper noun, but the letter is, so you get T-banen.

Why is it er ofte full and not er full ofte or ofte er full?

In a normal main clause, Norwegian word order is:

Subject – Verb – (Adverb) – Rest

So:

Trikken (subject)
er (verb)
ofte (adverb)
full (adjective / rest of the predicate)

→ Trikken er ofte full.

Other options:

Trikken er full ofte – sounds unusual or wrong in standard Norwegian.
Ofte er trikken full – possible, but this puts ofte first for emphasis, like “Often, the tram is full”.

So the neutral, normal word order here is Trikken er ofte full.

Does full mean “drunk” here, or “full/crowded”? How is it used?

full has several meanings in Norwegian, depending on context:

full = full (of people/things), crowded
- Trikken er ofte full.
  = The tram is often full/crowded.
full = drunk
- Han er full.
  = He is drunk.
full = complete
- en full rapport = a complete report

Here, because we are talking about trikken (a vehicle) and contrasting with tom (empty), full clearly means full/crowded, not drunk.

What exactly does tom mean here, and is it only used for objects?

tom means empty.

Typical uses:

Glasset er tomt. – The glass is empty.
Rommet er tomt. – The room is empty.
T-banen er tom. – The metro is empty.

You can also use tom metaphorically:

Jeg føler meg tom. – I feel empty (emotionally / exhausted).
Et tomt løfte. – An empty promise.

In the sentence, tom is the direct opposite of full, describing how many people are in T-banen.

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

ved means by / at / next to, focusing on being near something:

ved stoppet = by/at the stop
ved huset = by the house
ved elva = by the river

Alternatives:

på stoppet – literally on/at the stop.
- This is also possible in some contexts, especially for bus stops or tram stops.
- Common phrase: på busstoppet / på holdeplassen = at the bus stop.
i stoppet – in the stop
- This sounds wrong here; you’re not inside a “stop”. i is used for places you are inside: i huset, i butikken.

In this sentence, ved stoppet emphasizes physical position near the stop, which fits well with the addition nær gangfeltet (near the crosswalk).

What is the grammar of stoppet? Why not stoppen?

stopp is a neuter noun in Norwegian:

et stopp = a stop
stoppet = the stop

Pattern for neuter nouns:

et hus → huset
et stopp → stoppet

stoppen would suggest a masculine/feminine noun (en stopp → stoppen), which is not standard for this word.

Also note: in everyday language, people often say holdeplass or stasjon:

holdeplass (fem./masc.) – stop (typically for bus/tram)
stasjon (masc.) – station (train/metro)

How is nær working in nær gangfeltet? Is it an adjective or a preposition?

Here nær is used like a preposition, meaning near:

nær gangfeltet = near the crosswalk
nær huset = near the house

nær can also be an adjective:

et nært forhold = a close relationship
han er nær meg = he is close to me

And there’s a common expression nær ved meaning “almost”:

Han var nær ved å falle. = He almost fell.

In your sentence, you can think of ved stoppet nær gangfeltet as:

ved stoppet (at/by the stop)
nær gangfeltet (which is) near the crosswalk

All together: at the stop near the crosswalk.

What does gangfeltet mean exactly, and are there other words for this?

gangfelt literally is:

gang = walking / pedestrian
felt = lane / strip / field

So gangfeltet = the pedestrian crossing / the crosswalk.

Other common words/phrases:

fotgjengerovergang – pedestrian crossing
overgangsfelt – (also) pedestrian crossing
gangfelt – very normal, especially in traffic signs and everyday speech

In everyday English, the closest equivalents are crosswalk (US) or pedestrian crossing (UK).

Why is there a comma before men, and why is the word order men T-banen er tom?

Norwegian normally uses a comma before men when it connects two main clauses:

Trikken er ofte full – main clause
T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet – main clause

Joined with men (but):

Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet.

After men, the clause follows normal main-clause word order:
Subject – Verb – (Adverb/other parts)

So:

T-banen (subject)
er (verb)
tom (complement)

→ men T-banen er tom.

If you said men er T-banen tom, it would sound like a question (But is the metro empty?) or very marked emphasis, not a neutral statement.

Could the order of the last part change, like ved gangfeltet nær stoppet? Does it mean the same?

You could say:

T-banen er tom ved gangfeltet nær stoppet.

Grammatically this is fine, but the meaning shifts slightly:

ved stoppet nær gangfeltet
→ Primary reference is “the stop”, and you clarify which stop: the one near the crosswalk.
ved gangfeltet nær stoppet
→ Primary reference is “the crosswalk”, and you clarify which crosswalk: the one near the stop.

So the focus changes:

Original: empty at the stop (which is) near the crosswalk.
Alternative: empty at the crosswalk (which is) near the stop.

In many real situations those places are almost the same, but the structure tells you which is the main landmark.

When do I know to use the definite forms (stoppet, gangfeltet) in phrases like this?

In Norwegian, you use the definite form (with the -en / -et / -a ending) when you are talking about something specific and identifiable, like English the.

Here, both stoppet and gangfeltet are clearly specific:

Probably a known stop on a certain line.
A particular crosswalk near that stop.

That’s why you get:

ved stoppet nær gangfeltet = at the stop near the crosswalk

If you used indefinite forms, it would sound like you’re speaking in very general terms:

ved et stopp nær et gangfelt = at a stop near a crosswalk (any stop, any crosswalk)

So: think specific thing = definite form.

How do you pronounce this sentence?

A rough pronunciation guide (standard Eastern Norwegian):

Trikken er ofte full, men T-banen er tom ved stoppet nær gangfeltet.

Approximate IPA:
/ˈtrɪkːən ær ˈɔftə fʉl, mɛn ˈteːˌbɑːnən ær tʊm veː ˈstɔpːət næːr ˈgɑŋfɛltə/

Simplified:

Trikken – TRIK-ken (short i, double k = short vowel)
er – ær (like “air” but shorter)
ofte – OF-teh
full – ful (Norwegian u is like a fronted oo, between oo and ü)
men – men
T-banen – TEH-bah-nen (the T is said like the letter “te”)
tom – tom (short o, like in “top”)
ved – veh (often a long e)
stoppet – STOP-pet (short o, double p)
nær – nair (like “nair”, open æ sound)
gangfeltet – GANG-fell-teh (hard g, a like “father”)

Stress is mainly on the first syllable of each content word: TRIK-ken, OF-te, FULL, T-BA-nen, STO-ppet, GANG-fel-tet.