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Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag.

Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag.
She buys a cinnamon bun at the bakery every Tuesday.
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Questions & Answers about Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag.

Why is it hun and not henne at the start of the sentence?

Norwegian, like English, has different pronouns for subject and object.

  • hun = she (subject form)
  • henne = her (object form)

In this sentence, hun is the person doing the action (she is buying), so you must use the subject form:

  • Hun kjøper ... = She buys ...
  • If you needed the object form:
    • Jeg ser henne. = I see her.
Why is the verb kjøper in the second position after hun?

Norwegian main clauses normally follow the V2 rule (verb-second word order):

  1. First position: some element (often the subject)
  2. Second position: the finite verb (here: kjøper)
  3. Then the rest of the sentence

So:

  • Hun (subject – position 1)
  • kjøper (verb – position 2)
  • en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag (rest)

Even if you start the sentence with something else, the verb still tends to stay in second position:

  • Hver tirsdag kjøper hun en kanelbolle.
    • Hver tirsdag (time expression – position 1)
    • kjøper (verb – position 2)
    • hun (subject – now after the verb)
Why is it en kanelbolle and not ei kanelbolle or et kanelbolle?

Norwegian nouns have grammatical gender. Kanelbolle is a masculine noun, so the standard indefinite article is:

  • en kanelbolle = a cinnamon bun

In many dialects, bolle can also be treated as feminine (ei bolle), but in standard Bokmål en bolle / en kanelbolle is the most neutral and common form.

The neuter article et would be wrong here because kanelbolle is not a neuter noun.

Is kanelbolle one word or two, and what does each part mean?

Kanelbolle is a compound noun, written as one word in Norwegian:

  • kanel = cinnamon
  • bolle = bun / sweet roll

Put together: kanelbolle = cinnamon bun.

Some useful forms:

  • Indefinite singular: en kanelbolle (a cinnamon bun)
  • Definite singular: kanelbollen (the cinnamon bun)
  • Indefinite plural: kanelboller (cinnamon buns)
  • Definite plural: kanelbollene (the cinnamon buns)
Why is it på bakeriet and not i bakeriet?

Both på and i can appear with places, but:

  • på bakeriet is the usual expression for at the bakery (as a shop / business)
  • i bakeriet would focus more on being inside the physical space of the bakery

In practice:

  • Hun jobber på bakeriet. = She works at the bakery (as a workplace).
  • Det er varmt i bakeriet. = It is warm in the bakery (inside the room).

In your sentence, she buys something at the bakery as a business, so på bakeriet is natural.

Why is it bakeriet and not et bakeri or just bakeri?

Bakeri (bakery) is a neuter noun:

  • Indefinite singular: et bakeri = a bakery
  • Definite singular: bakeriet = the bakery

In your sentence, bakeriet is definite (the specific bakery she goes to regularly):

  • på bakeriet = at the bakery (the one we have in mind)

If you said:

  • Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på et bakeri.
    That would mean at a bakery (not a specific one; just some bakery).
Why is the verb in the present tense kjøper if this is something she does every Tuesday?

Norwegian present tense is used for:

  • actions happening now
  • habitual or repeated actions
  • many future meanings

So:

  • Hun kjøper en kanelbolle hver tirsdag.
    = She buys / She usually buys a cinnamon bun every Tuesday.

You do not need a special form like English “does buy” or “will buy” here. Present tense plus a time expression (hver tirsdag) is enough to show it is a regular habit.

Why is it hver tirsdag and not hver tirsdager?

With hver (every), Norwegian uses the singular form of the noun:

  • hver tirsdag = every Tuesday
  • hver mandag = every Monday
  • hver uke = every week

So you cannot say hver tirsdager. That would be like saying every Tuesdays in English.

For plural without hver, you use the plural form:

  • på tirsdager = on Tuesdays (in general)
Could hver tirsdag go in a different place in the sentence?

Yes. Time expressions are quite flexible, as long as you keep the V2 rule (verb in second position). Some common options:

  1. Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag.
    – neutral, very common

  2. Hun kjøper hver tirsdag en kanelbolle på bakeriet.
    – also possible, slightly different rhythm

  3. Hver tirsdag kjøper hun en kanelbolle på bakeriet.
    – emphasizes every Tuesday

All are grammatically correct; the choice affects emphasis and style more than meaning.

Why is tirsdag not capitalized like in English?

In Norwegian, days of the week and months are written with a lowercase initial letter:

  • mandag, tirsdag, onsdag, torsdag, fredag, lørdag, søndag
  • januar, februar, mars, ...

So tirsdag is correct, not Tirsdag (unless it starts the sentence or is part of a title).

How do you pronounce kjøper, especially the kj and ø?

Approximate guide:

  • kj:

    • A voiceless, “soft” shy/hy sound made further forward in the mouth.
    • Many English speakers approximate it with hy in “huge” or a soft sh; the real Norwegian sound is a bit different, but close.

  • ø:

    • Like the vowel in British “bird” or French peu, German schön.
    • Rounded lips, tongue in the middle/central area.

  • kjøper roughly: [ˈçøːpər]

    • kjø-: soft kj
      • long ø
    • -per: like “per” with a schwa sound at the end in many dialects: -pər

You can think of it (very approximately) as: “HYUR-per”, but with the lips rounded on the ø.

What is the difference between Hun kjøper en kanelbolle ... and Hun kjøper kanelboller ...?

Changing the object changes the meaning:

  • Hun kjøper en kanelbolle på bakeriet hver tirsdag.
    = She buys one cinnamon bun at the bakery every Tuesday.

  • Hun kjøper kanelboller på bakeriet hver tirsdag.
    = She buys cinnamon buns (some number, usually more than one, or not specified) at the bakery every Tuesday.

Norwegian usually needs an article or plural ending on countable nouns used as objects:

  • singular countable: en kanelbolle / kanelbollen
  • plural countable: kanelboller / kanelbollene

Bare singular kanelbolle without an article is not normally used as a direct object in standard sentences like this.