Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken. - I always use the same shopping bag when I go to the grocery store.

Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen = I always use the same shopping bag.
Not: Jeg bruke... or Jeg bruk... (those are ungrammatical here).

Why does alltid come after bruker and not before, like in English?

Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must be in second position in the sentence.

In Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen:

Jeg (subject) = first element
bruker (finite verb) = second element
alltid (adverb) comes after the verb

So the pattern is:
Subject – Verb – (Adverb) – Object
→ Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen

If you start the sentence with something else, the verb still has to be second:

Når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken, bruker jeg alltid den samme handleposen.
(“When I go to the grocery store, I always use the same shopping bag.”)

Here the first element is the whole Når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken-clause, so bruker must come right after that.

Why is it den samme handleposen and not just samme handlepose?

There are two things happening here:

“the same” = den samme
- samme needs the demonstrative den (for masculine/feminine nouns) or det (for neuter nouns).
- So:
  - den samme bilen (the same car – bil is masc.)
  - det samme huset (the same house – hus is neuter)
Double definiteness with adjectives
When you have an adjective (samme) + a specific noun (“the bag”), the noun is definite twice:
- a determiner (den)
- and a definite ending on the noun (-en, -a, or -et)

So:

en handlepose = a shopping bag
handleposen = the shopping bag
den samme handleposen = the same shopping bag

Forms like samme handlepose or den samme handlepose (without -n at the end) are incorrect in standard Bokmål.

What gender is handlepose, and how can I see that in this sentence?

In Bokmål, handlepose is usually treated as masculine:

Indefinite: en handlepose (a shopping bag)
Definite: handleposen (the shopping bag)

In the sentence, you see the gender from:

den = masculine/feminine singular demonstrative
handleposen = -en ending (masculine/feminine definite form)

So den + ... + -en together tell you the noun is not neuter.

In spoken language some people might use feminine (ei handlepose / handleposa), but en handlepose / handleposen is the standard Bokmål form.

What’s the difference between når and da, and why is it når here?

Both can mean “when”, but they’re used differently:

når =
- for repeated / habitual actions (present, past, or future)
- for general truths
da =
- for one specific time in the past

In this sentence:

når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken = whenever / when I go to the grocery store (repeated habit)

So you must use når, not da.

Examples:

Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken.
I always use the same shopping bag when I go to the grocery store. (habit)
Da jeg gikk til dagligvarebutikken i går, brukte jeg den samme handleposen.
When I went to the grocery store yesterday, I used the same shopping bag. (one specific time in the past)

Why is it går til dagligvarebutikken and not går på dagligvarebutikken or drar til dagligvarebutikken?

går til vs drar til
- gå = “go on foot / walk”
- dra = “go / leave / travel” (by any means of transport)
So:
- Jeg går til dagligvarebutikken. = I walk to the grocery store.
- Jeg drar til dagligvarebutikken. = I’m going to the grocery store (by car, bus, etc., or unspecified).
Both are correct; går just emphasizes walking.
Why til, not på?
- til = to (movement towards a place)
  - gå til butikken = go (walk) to the shop
- på often means “at/on”, and with butikk you normally don’t say gå på butikken in standard Bokmål for “go to the shop” (though some dialects do).

So går til dagligvarebutikken is the normal standard way to say “(I) walk to the grocery store.”

Why is dagligvarebutikken written as one long word?

Norwegian, like German, loves compound nouns: you glue several nouns (or adjectives + nouns) together into one long word.

dagligvarebutikken breaks down like this:

daglig = daily
vare = goods / item
butikk = shop / store
-en = definite ending (“the”)

So literally: the daily-goods-shop = “the grocery store”.

As separate words, daglig vare butikk would be incorrect; it must be one compound: dagligvarebutikk (a grocery store) → dagligvarebutikken (the grocery store).

Why is it til dagligvarebutikken and not til dagligvarebutikk?

Because in English you say “the” grocery store here, and Norwegian marks definiteness on the noun itself, not with a separate word like “the”.

en dagligvarebutikk = a grocery store
dagligvarebutikken = the grocery store

The meaning is “when I go to the grocery store (the one I usually go to)”, so you use the definite form: dagligvarebutikken.

So:

til dagligvarebutikken = to the grocery store
til en dagligvarebutikk = to a grocery store (some grocery store, not a specific one)

Could you just say butikk instead of dagligvarebutikk?

Yes, in everyday conversation Norwegians often just say butikk if the context is clear:

Jeg går til butikken.
I’m going to the (grocery) store / shop.

dagligvarebutikk is more specific: a grocery store / supermarket (food, household items). butikk can be any kind of shop (clothes, electronics, etc.), but in many contexts “the shop” will be understood as the local grocery store.

So both are possible; dagligvarebutikk is more explicit, butikk is shorter and more common in casual speech.

Why is the word order når jeg går... and not når går jeg... after når?

After når (and other subordinating conjunctions like fordi, at, hvis), Norwegian uses normal subject–verb order, not V2:

når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken
→ jeg (subject) + går (verb)

If the clause with når comes first, the main clause after it uses V2:

Når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken, bruker jeg alltid den samme handleposen.
- Subordinate: når jeg går til dagligvarebutikken (subject before verb)
- Main: bruker jeg alltid den samme handleposen (verb in second position)

If you said når går jeg til dagligvarebutikken, it would mean something like “when am I going to the grocery store?” (a question), not “when I go to the grocery store”.

What is the difference between handlepose and just pose?

pose (alone) is a general word for bag (often a plastic bag) or packet.
handlepose is more specific: a shopping bag (a bag you use to carry groceries / items you bought).

You can say:

Kan jeg få en pose? = Can I have a bag? (in a shop, this is often understood as a shopping bag anyway)
Jeg har med min egen handlepose. = I bring my own shopping bag.

In your sentence, handleposen emphasizes that this is the shopping bag you use for groceries, not just any random bag.

Does Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen mean I’m doing it right now, or that I usually do it?

In Norwegian, the simple present often expresses habits as well as things happening now.

Jeg bruker alltid den samme handleposen
→ describes a habitual action:
“I always (as a rule) use the same shopping bag.”

If you wanted to emphasize that you’re doing it right now, you’d usually add some context:

Akkurat nå bruker jeg den samme handleposen som i går.
Right now I’m using the same shopping bag as yesterday.

So in your sentence, it’s best understood as a general habit, not a one‑time action at this moment.