Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Etter frokost går vi til lekeplassen i nabolaget. - After breakfast we go to the playground in the neighborhood.

You can say etter frokosten, but that sounds more specific, like “after that particular breakfast” that both speakers know about. In most everyday sentences, learners should use the bare form (frokost) for meals.

Why is går in the present tense if in English we say “we go” or “we are going” (often about the future)?

Norwegian present tense (går) covers:

Right now / current action
- Vi går til lekeplassen nå. = We’re walking to the playground now.
Regular / habitual action
- Etter frokost går vi til lekeplassen. = After breakfast we (normally) go to the playground.
Planned future (with a time expression)
- I morgen går vi til lekeplassen. = Tomorrow we’re going to the playground.

So går here is a present tense with a habitual meaning, very similar to English “we go” in “After breakfast we go to the playground.” Norwegian doesn’t use a separate “-ing” form the way English does.

What is the difference between går and drar in this kind of sentence?

Both can translate to go, but they’re used differently:

gå = to walk (literally go on foot)
dra = to go / leave / depart, not tied to walking; can be by car, bus, etc.

In your sentence:

Etter frokost går vi til lekeplassen …
suggests you walk to the playground.

If you just want to say “go” without focusing on walking:

Etter frokost drar vi til lekeplassen i nabolaget.
= After breakfast we go to the playground in the neighborhood.

Native speakers use both, depending on whether mode of movement (walking) matters.

Why is it til lekeplassen and not på lekeplassen or i lekeplassen?

The preposition depends on the relationship:

til = to (movement towards a place)
- Vi går til lekeplassen. = We go to the playground.
på = on / at (being located at a place, often open areas, surfaces)
- Vi er på lekeplassen. = We are at the playground.
i = in / inside
- i huset = in the house
- i butikken = in the shop

So:

går til lekeplassen — movement to the playground
leker på lekeplassen — playing at the playground

Why is it lekeplassen with -en at the end?

Norwegian usually marks the definite article at the end of the noun, not as a separate word like the in English.

lekeplass = playground (indefinite: a playground)
lekeplassen = the playground (definite: the playground)

So:

til lekeplassen = to the playground

If you said til en lekeplass, that would mean “to a playground” (not a specific one). The sentence you gave assumes both speaker and listener know which playground it is.

What does lekeplass literally mean?

It’s a compound word:

leke = to play (also leke can mean “toy”)
plass = place / space / spot

So lekeplass literally is “play-place”, i.e. a place for playing → playground.
The definite form just adds -en: lekeplassen = the playground.

Why is it i nabolaget and not i vårt nabolag (“in our neighborhood”)?

Both are grammatically fine, but they feel slightly different:

i nabolaget
- Literally: “in the neighborhood”.
- In context, it usually implies our / the local neighborhood, so the possessive is understood.
i vårt nabolag
- Literally: “in our neighborhood”.
- A bit more explicit, stressing that it’s our neighborhood (as opposed to someone else’s).

Norwegian often leaves out possessive words when context is clear. So i nabolaget is very natural and often preferred here.

What is the difference between nabolag and nabolaget?

Again, this is about definiteness:

nabolag = neighborhood (indefinite: a neighborhood)
nabolaget = the neighborhood (definite: the neighborhood)

In the sentence:

i nabolaget = in the neighborhood

If you said i et nabolag, it would be “in a neighborhood” (unspecified which one). Here we’re talking about the specific area where we live, so the neighborhood is used.

Could you say Etter frokost skal vi til lekeplassen instead? How would that change the meaning?

Yes, you can, but it shifts the nuance:

Etter frokost går vi til lekeplassen …
- Sounds like a habit / routine (“After breakfast, we (usually) go to the playground”).
Etter frokost skal vi til lekeplassen …
- Uses skal (shall / will), which sounds more like a plan or intention this time.
- “After breakfast, we’re going to the playground” (as a specific plan).

So:

går → neutral present, often habitual
skal → planned / intended future action.

Why is the word order Etter frokost går vi … and not Vi går etter frokost …?

Both word orders are possible, but they’re used slightly differently.

Etter frokost går vi til lekeplassen …
- Emphasis on “after breakfast” (time first).
- Very natural word order for stating routines.
- Norwegian often likes to put time expressions first.
Vi går til lekeplassen etter frokost.
- More neutral emphasis on “we go to the playground” and then “after breakfast” as an extra detail.
- Also correct and common.

So the sentence you’re learning is a typical way to start with the time and then say what happens. Both are grammatical.

Does vi always mean “we”, like in English? Are there any tricks with it?

Yes:

vi = we

There are no hidden forms like in English (“us”, “ourselves” etc.); those are separate words in Norwegian:

vi = we
oss = us
vår / vårt / våre = our (depending on gender/number)

So in your sentence, går vi is simply “we go” / “we are going”.

How do you pronounce lekeplassen and nabolaget?

Approximate pronunciations (Standard Eastern Norwegian):

lekeplassen: [LEH-keh-plass-en]
- le like le in “let” but a bit longer
- ke like keh
- plass like English plus but with a as in “father”
- en like “en” in taken (short, unstressed)
nabolaget: [NAH-boh-lah-get]
- na like “nah”
- bo like “bow” (as in “boat” without the t)
- la like “lah”
- get with a soft “g”, something like “yeht” in many dialects

Exact sounds vary a bit by region, but this will be understood everywhere.

Is Etter frokost always followed by inversion (går vi, drar vi, etc.)?

Yes, when a time expression like Etter frokost is placed first, Norwegian main clauses do verb–subject inversion:

Etter frokost går vi …
- Time (Etter frokost) – Verb (går) – Subject (vi)

If you put the subject first, no inversion:

Vi går etter frokost …
- Subject (Vi) – Verb (går) – Time (etter frokost)

Rule of thumb: in a main clause, the verb usually comes in second position, no matter what is first. If something other than the subject is first (here: a time expression), the verb still wants to be second, so it jumps in front of the subject.