Breakdown of Dagligvarebutikken ligger rett ved busstoppet.
Questions & Answers about Dagligvarebutikken ligger rett ved busstoppet.
Dagligvarebutikken is a long compound noun made of smaller parts:
- daglig = daily, everyday
- vare = item, goods, product
- dagligvare = everyday goods → groceries
- butikk = shop, store
- dagligvarebutikk = grocery store
- dagligvarebutikken = the grocery store (definite form)
So the whole word literally means “the grocery store” (the store for everyday goods).
In Norwegian, the definite article (the) is usually attached to the end of the noun.
- en butikk = a shop/store
- butikken = the shop/store
Butikk is a common-gender noun (it takes en in the indefinite: en butikk), so its definite ending is -en.
In a compound, the last part decides the gender and the ending:
- en dagligvarebutikk = a grocery store
- dagligvarebutikken = the grocery store
Yes, if the context is clear.
- Dagligvarebutikken ligger rett ved busstoppet. = The grocery store is right by the bus stop.
- Butikken ligger rett ved busstoppet. = The store is right by the bus stop.
Dagligvarebutikken is more specific (it tells you what kind of store). Butikken is more general and relies on context: people need to know which store you mean.
Norwegian often uses ligger (from å ligge, to lie) to describe where something is located, especially buildings, places or objects:
- Huset ligger ved elva. = The house is (located) by the river.
- Skolen ligger i sentrum. = The school is (located) in the center.
You can say:
- Dagligvarebutikken er rett ved busstoppet.
This is grammatically correct, but ligger sounds more natural when you talk about the position of a building or place on a map/in space. It’s a bit more specific than er.
Not in practice.
Literally, å ligge means to lie (as in lying on a bed), but in location sentences it’s used idiomatically to mean “is situated / is located.”
So in this sentence, nobody imagines the store lying on its side; it just means:
- The store is (located) right by the bus stop.
This is very similar to German liegt or Dutch ligt used for locations.
Rett ved is an adverb + preposition combination:
- rett = right, directly, straight
- ved = by, near, next to, at (indicating closeness)
Together, rett ved means right by / immediately next to / just by.
Compare:
- ved busstoppet = by the bus stop (near it)
- rett ved busstoppet = right by the bus stop (very close, almost touching)
All of these express closeness, but with slightly different flavors:
- ved = by, at, beside
- Huset ligger ved elva. (right by the river bank)
- nær = near (slightly more general)
- Huset ligger nær elva. (in the area of the river; not necessarily right on the bank)
- ved siden av = next to / beside
- Butikken ligger ved siden av busstoppet. (explicitly “beside” it)
In rett ved busstoppet, ved implies physical closeness, and rett intensifies it.
Busstoppet is also a compound:
- buss = bus
- stopp = stop
- busstopp = bus stop
- busstoppet = the bus stop (definite, neuter)
Spelling points:
- When you join buss + stopp, you get busstopp (the double s is just the consonant from buss
- the first s of stopp; you don’t add an extra s).
- It is written as one word in Norwegian spelling.
Grammatically:
- et busstopp = a bus stop (neuter: et)
- busstoppet = the bus stop (neuter definite ending -et)
Unfortunately, gender in Norwegian is partly arbitrary and must often be memorized:
- en butikk – butikken → common gender (takes en / -en)
- et busstopp – busstoppet → neuter gender (takes et / -et)
There are some patterns, but there are many exceptions. When you learn a new noun, it’s best to learn it together with en/ei/et:
- en butikk
- et busstopp
The sentence has standard Norwegian word order:
- Subject – Verb – Place
- Dagligvarebutikken (subject)
- ligger (verb)
- rett ved busstoppet (place adverbial)
You can front the place for emphasis or style:
- Rett ved busstoppet ligger dagligvarebutikken.
This is still correct because Norwegian is a V2 language: the verb must be the second element in a main clause, no matter what comes first. In the new version:
- Rett ved busstoppet = first element
- ligger = verb (second)
- dagligvarebutikken = then comes the subject
Using a standard Eastern Norwegian-type pronunciation (approximate IPA and stress):
- Dagligvarebutikken → [ˈdɑːɡlɪɡˌvɑːrəˈbʉtɪkːən]
- Main stress on DAG-, secondary on -BUT-: DAGligvareBUTikken
- Double consonants (like kk) mean a short vowel before and a long consonant.
- ligger → [ˈlɪɡːər]
- Short i, long g sound.
- rett → [rɛtː]
- Short e, long t.
- ved → [veː]
- Long e sound.
- busstoppet → [ˈbʉsːtɔpːət] (or with a slightly “sh”-like s in some accents)
You don’t normally drop any syllables; just keep vowels short before double consonants and long before single consonants.
Yes, you will often hear:
- matbutikk instead of dagligvarebutikk
- mat = food
- matbutikk = food store / grocery store (very common in speech)
- bussholdeplass instead of busstopp
- a bit more formal or technical, but also common:
- Dagligvarebutikken ligger rett ved bussholdeplassen.
So in everyday language, many people might naturally say:
- Matbutikken ligger rett ved busstoppet.
In Norwegian, you:
- Capitalize the first word of the sentence.
- Capitalize proper nouns (names, places, brands, etc.).
Common nouns like dagligvarebutikk, buss, stopp, butikk are not capitalized, just like “store”, “bus”, “stop” in English mid-sentence.
So:
- Dagligvarebutikken ligger rett ved busstoppet.
Only the first word is capitalized because it starts the sentence.