Han vil vinne konkurransen.

He wants to win the competition.

Breakdown of Han vil vinne konkurransen.

• han: he
• ville: want
• konkurransen: the competition
• vinne: to win

Questions & Answers about Han vil vinne konkurransen.

Does vil here mean "will" or "wants to"?

In Han vil vinne konkurransen, vil most naturally means "wants to":

• Han vil vinne konkurransen.
  → He wants to win the competition.

However, vil can also mean "will" in the sense of future or willingness, depending on context:

• Han vil nok vinne konkurransen.
  → He will probably win the competition. (future prediction)

Without extra context, many learners are first taught to read vil as "wants to" when followed by an action like vinne.

Why is it han vil vinne and not han vil å vinne?

In Norwegian, after modal verbs like:

• vil (want to / will),
• skal (shall / going to),
• kan (can),
• må (must / have to),
• bør (should),

you do not use å before the next verb.

So you say:

• ✅ Han vil vinne. (He wants to win.)
• ❌ Han vil å vinne.

But with non-modal verbs expressing desire, you do use å:

• Han ønsker å vinne. (He wishes/wants to win.)
• Han håper å vinne. (He hopes to win.)

Why is it vinne and not vinner?

Vinne is the infinitive form of the verb (the dictionary form), equivalent to "to win" in English.
Vinner is the present tense – "wins" / "is winning".

After a modal verb like vil, you must use the infinitive:

• ✅ Han vil vinne konkurransen.
  → literally: He wants to win the competition.

Using the present tense after vil is ungrammatical:

• ❌ Han vil vinner konkurransen.

Compare:

• Han vinner konkurransen. → He wins the competition / He is winning the competition.
  (Here vinner is the main verb, with no modal verb.)

What does the -en ending in konkurransen mean?

The -en at the end of konkurransen is the definite article, similar to "the" in English.

• en konkurranse = a competition (indefinite)
• konkurransen = the competition (definite)

Norwegian often attaches the article to the end of the noun:

• en bil → bilen (a car → the car)
• en stol → stolen (a chair → the chair)
• en konkurranse → konkurransen (a competition → the competition)

What is the base form and gender of konkurransen?

The base (indefinite singular) form is:

• en konkurranse = a competition

This tells you the gender is masculine (en-word).

Its main forms are:

• Indefinite singular: en konkurranse (a competition)
• Definite singular: konkurransen (the competition)
• Indefinite plural: konkurranser (competitions)
• Definite plural: konkurransene (the competitions)

Could I say Han vil vinne en konkurranse instead? What’s the difference?

Yes, you can say Han vil vinne en konkurranse, but the meaning changes slightly.

• Han vil vinne konkurransen.
  → He wants to win the competition (a specific one we both know about).

• Han vil vinne en konkurranse.
  → He wants to win a competition (not a specific one; any competition, in general).

So:

• konkurransen = a particular, known competition.
• en konkurranse = some/any competition; not specified.

How would I say “He will win the competition” as a future prediction? Is vil still correct?

Yes, you can still use vil for a future prediction, often with an adverb:

• Han vil nok vinne konkurransen.
  → He will probably win the competition.

You can also use kommer til å:

• Han kommer til å vinne konkurransen.
  → He is going to win the competition. / He will win the competition.

Skal is possible, but tends to sound more like planned/decided future:

• Han skal vinne konkurransen.
  → He is going to win the competition. / He is determined to win.
  (Often sounds like a plan or strong intention.)

So:

• vil vinne can be wants to win or will win, depending on context.
• kommer til å vinne focuses more clearly on future outcome.
• skal vinne often suggests determined plan/intention.

Can I change the word order, like Konkurransen vil han vinne?

Yes, you can, but the emphasis changes.

• Han vil vinne konkurransen.
  → Neutral word order; just a normal statement.

• Konkurransen vil han vinne.
  → More marked; puts emphasis on konkurransen (“That competition, he wants to win.”)
  This is something you might see in writing or in spoken language for emphasis.

Basic rule: Norwegian main clauses usually follow Subject – Verb – Object:

• Han (S) vil (V) vinne (V) konkurransen (O).

How should I pronounce konkurransen?

Approximate pronunciation (Bokmål, standard Eastern accent):

• konkurransen → [kong‑koo‑RAHN‑sen] (rough English approximation)

Syllables: kon‑kur‑ran‑sen (4 syllables)

Some tips:

• Stress is on -RAN-: kon‑kur‑RAN‑sen
• r is tapped or rolled.
• Final -en is pronounced roughly “en”, not silent.

For Han vil vinne konkurransen:

• Han → like English “hun” (short, open a)
• vil → like English “vil” in “vil-lage”, short i
• vinne → VIN-ne (stress on VIN, short i)
• konkurransen → as above.

Is han only “he”, or can it also mean “him” like in English?

Han is the subject form (nominative): he.

Norwegian distinguishes between subject and object forms:

• Han = he (subject)

  • Han vil vinne konkurransen. → He wants to win the competition.

• Ham (Bokmål, more formal/old-fashioned) or han (colloquial) = him (object)

  • Jeg så ham/han. → I saw him.

So in your sentence, han is correct because it is the subject of the sentence.