Breakdown of Mange småbarnsforeldre lever i tidsklemma og har lite tid til seg selv.
Questions & Answers about Mange småbarnsforeldre lever i tidsklemma og har lite tid til seg selv.
Småbarnsforeldre is a compound word made of three parts:
- små = small
- barn = child (plural: barn too)
- foreldre = parents
First you get småbarn = small children.
Then you add an s (a linking/genitive s) + foreldre:
- småbarn
- s
- foreldre → småbarnsforeldre
- s
So småbarnsforeldre literally means “parents of small children” or “parents of young children.”
No, you can’t say småbarnforeldre; the natural, correct form is småbarnsforeldre.
The s is a linking element that often appears in Norwegian compound nouns. It often corresponds to a possessive/genitive relationship:
- småbarnsforeldre ≈ “small-children’s parents”
Other examples with the same pattern:
- barnehage (barn + hage) → no s
- barnesang (barne + sang)
- arbeidsgiver (arbeid + s + giver)
- studentkort (student + kort) → no s
You mostly have to learn individually which compounds take an s, but småbarnsforeldre always has it.
In Norwegian:
- mange is used with countable plural nouns
- mange barn, mange bøker, mange mennesker
- mye is used with uncountable / mass nouns
- mye tid, mye vann, mye penger
Foreldre (parents) are countable people, and småbarnsforeldre is a plural countable noun, so you must use mange:
- mange småbarnsforeldre = many parents of small children
Both lever i tidsklemma and er i tidsklemma are grammatically possible, but they feel a bit different:
lever i tidsklemma = “live in the time squeeze,”
suggesting an ongoing way of life; their everyday life is characterized by constant time pressure.er i tidsklemma = “are in the time squeeze,”
describes their state/situation now, but doesn’t emphasize lifestyle as strongly.
In this sentence, lever fits well because it talks about how many parents live their lives:
Mange småbarnsforeldre lever i tidsklemma… = “A lot of parents of young children live under constant time pressure…”
Tidsklemma is a common Norwegian expression:
- tid = time
- klemme = squeeze, pinch, a tight spot
So literally, tidsklemma is “the time squeeze” – being squeezed for time, caught between demands from work, family, etc., and not having enough time.
The ending -a is the definite singular ending in Bokmål for some feminine nouns (and optionally for some masculine nouns):
- ei klemme → klemma (the squeeze)
- ei uke → uka (the week)
So:
- i tidsklemma = “in the (time) squeeze”
It uses the definite form because this is a set phrase – you almost always say i tidsklemma, not i en tidsklemme.
The idiomatic expression in Norwegian is å være / leve i tidsklemma:
- i corresponds to “in”: living in a situation, inside that pressure.
Using under (under) or med (with) here would sound unusual or wrong. Some other fixed patterns:
- i knipe = in a tight spot
- i trøbbel = in trouble
- i fare = in danger
Similarly:
- i tidsklemma = in the time squeeze
The preposition is largely idiomatic; you just have to memorize i tidsklemma as a fixed phrase.
Tid (time) is normally treated as an uncountable noun when talking about time in general. For amounts of uncountable nouns, you use lite, not liten:
- mye tid = much time
- lite tid = little time (not much)
Liten is for countable singular nouns:
- en liten bil = a small car
- et lite hus = a small house
So:
- har lite tid = have little time
Using har liten tid here would be incorrect in standard Norwegian.
Yes, you can say har litt tid til seg selv, but it changes the meaning slightly.
lite tid = little time / not much time
Often has a negative feel: a shortage or lack.- De har lite tid til seg selv = They hardly have any time for themselves.
litt tid = a bit of time / some time
Neutral or slightly positive: at least there is some time.- De har litt tid til seg selv = They have a bit of time for themselves.
The original sentence emphasizes the lack of time, so lite tid is the best choice.
Both tid til seg selv and tid for seg selv can appear in Norwegian, but they’re not identical and they sound a bit different.
tid til seg selv
- Focuses on having time available for the purpose of doing something for yourself.
- Very common in sentences like: Jeg har ikke tid til meg selv = I don’t have time for myself.
for seg selv on its own often means “by oneself / alone”
- Han bor for seg selv = He lives on his own.
- Hun sitter for seg selv = She sits by herself.
In har lite tid til seg selv, the idea is “have little time available for oneself”, so til fits best.
Seg is the reflexive pronoun for he/she/they:
- Han vasker seg = He washes himself.
- De skynder seg = They hurry (themselves).
Seg selv adds emphasis, like “himself / herself / themselves (in particular)”:
- De har lite tid til seg would sound odd or incomplete here.
- De har lite tid til seg selv = They have little time for themselves (for their own needs).
In practice, in phrases like tid til seg selv, you almost always include selv; seg alone is unusual in this specific expression.
Seg (selv) is the reflexive pronoun, used when the object refers back to the subject:
- Subject = småbarnsforeldre (they)
- Object = time for themselves (the same people)
So you must use the reflexive form seg selv.
Compare:
De har lite tid til seg selv.
They have little time for themselves. (correct)De har lite tid til dem selv.
Sounds wrong; dem is a non‑reflexive object pronoun (“them,” some other group).Dere har lite tid til dere selv.
Here the subject is dere (you plural), so the reflexive form for 2nd person plural is dere (selv), not seg:- Dere skynder dere.
- Dere har tid til dere selv.
In the original sentence the subject is they (parents), so seg selv is correct.
Yes. Both of these are grammatically correct and natural:
- Mange småbarnsforeldre lever i tidsklemma og har lite tid til seg selv.
- Mange småbarnsforeldre har lite tid til seg selv og lever i tidsklemma.
The meaning is essentially the same; you just change the order of the two facts:
- In 1, you first describe their life situation (they live in the time squeeze), then the result (little time for themselves).
- In 2, you first mention the result (little time for themselves), then you describe the situation (they live in the time squeeze).
Norwegian allows this kind of flexibility when the subject stays the same and the clauses are linked with og.