Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.

Later in the day I listen to a professional talk on the internet.

Breakdown of Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.

• jeg: I
• et: a
• dagen: the day
• høre: to listen to
• på: on
• på: in
• nettet: the net
• senere: later
• faglig: professional
• foredraget: the talk

Questions & Answers about Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.

Why is the verb hører in second position: “Senere på dagen hører jeg …” and not “Senere på dagen jeg hører …”?

Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must be in second position in the sentence, no matter what comes first.

• First element: Senere på dagen (the time expression, treated as one unit)
• Second element (must be the verb): hører
• Then comes the subject: jeg
• Then the rest: et faglig foredrag på nettet

So:

• ✅ Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.
• ❌ Senere på dagen jeg hører et faglig foredrag på nettet. (wrong word order)

If you start with the subject, it becomes:

• ✅ Jeg hører et faglig foredrag på nettet senere på dagen.

What does “Senere på dagen” literally mean, and how is it different from “senere i dag”?

Literally, “Senere på dagen” means “later on the day”, but idiomatically it matches English “later in the day”.

• Senere på dagen
  Refers to a specific day that is understood from context (usually today or the day being narrated), and contrasts with other parts of the same day:

  • Senere på dagen (later in the day)
  • senere på kvelden (later in the evening)
  • senere på natta (later in the night)

• Senere i dag
  Means “later today”, more general and explicitly anchored to today.

In many everyday contexts, “senere på dagen” and “senere i dag” overlap and both can work, but “senere på dagen” feels a bit more like you’re describing the structure of the day (a sort of daily schedule or narrative).

Why is it “på dagen” and not “i dagen”, when English says “in the day”?

Prepositions simply don’t line up one‑to‑one across languages.

• Norwegian uses på with many time expressions where English uses in or on:
  • på dagen – during the day / in the day
  • på kvelden – in the evening
  • på mandag – on Monday
  • på vinteren – in (the) winter

Using i dagen here would be incorrect; the idiomatic expression is “senere på dagen”.

Why is it “dagen” (with -en) and not just “dag”?

“Dagen” is the definite form of “dag”:

• dag = day
• dagen = the day

English also says “later in the day”, not just “later in day”. Norwegian mirrors that: you’re talking about that particular day whose timeline you’re describing, so you use the definite form: dagen.

Why is the present tense “hører” used when it’s talking about something later in the day?

Norwegian often uses the present tense to talk about the near future, especially for planned or scheduled events. The time expression makes the future meaning clear:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag …
  = Later in the day I’m going to listen to / I’ll be listening to a professional lecture …

This is similar to English “Later today I’m seeing a friend.” The verb looks present, but the time phrase gives it a future meaning.

If you want to make the future even more explicit, you can use:

• Senere på dagen skal jeg høre et faglig foredrag på nettet.
  (More clearly “I’m going to listen to …” / “I will listen to …”)

What’s the difference between “høre” and “lytte”, and would “lytte” work here?

• høre = to hear (can be passive or active)
• lytte (til) = to listen (to) (more active, focused)

About the sentence:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.
  This is natural and common. In practice, “høre (på)” is very often used where English says “listen (to)”:
  • høre på musikk = listen to music
  • høre på et foredrag = listen to a lecture

Many speakers would actually say:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg på et faglig foredrag på nettet.

Adding “på” emphasizes the “listen to” meaning.

Using lytte is possible but less common in everyday speech and can sound a bit more formal or “concentrated”:

• Senere på dagen lytter jeg til et faglig foredrag på nettet. (correct, slightly more formal)

Should it be “hører et foredrag” or “hører på et foredrag”?

Both can occur, but there’s a nuance:

• høre et foredrag
  Grammatically fine; some speakers use it. It can sound a bit more like simply hearing it.

• høre på et foredrag
  Very common and often preferred in everyday Norwegian to mean “listen to a lecture”.

So a very natural version is:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg på et faglig foredrag på nettet.

But the original sentence without på is still understandable and acceptable.

What exactly does “faglig” mean in “et faglig foredrag”?

“Faglig” comes from “fag”, which can mean subject, field, profession, trade.

“faglig” roughly means:

• professional, related to a profession or work field
• subject-related, related to a specific academic/technical field
• academic / specialist, as opposed to casual or entertainment content

So “et faglig foredrag” is a professional / academic / subject-specific lecture, not just a random talk or casual chat.

Why is the article “et” used before “faglig foredrag”?

Norwegian has three grammatical genders. “Foredrag” is a neuter noun, so it takes the neuter indefinite article “et”:

• et foredrag = a lecture / a talk (neuter)
• en forelesning = a lecture (common gender)
• ei bok / en bok = a book (feminine/common)

Because the noun is modified by an adjective (faglig), the structure is:

• et faglig foredrag = a professional lecture

So “et” is there both because it’s indefinite (“a lecture”) and because “foredrag” is neuter.

Why is it “et faglig foredrag” and not “det faglige foredraget”?

• et faglig foredrag = a professional lecture (indefinite, not previously specified)
• det faglige foredraget = the professional lecture (a specific one both speaker and listener know about)

In your sentence, we’re presenting the piece of information for the first time, as part of a daily program:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.
  = Later in the day I (will) listen to a professional lecture online.

If you had already mentioned a specific lecture, you could use the definite form:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg det faglige foredraget på nettet.
  (Later in the day I listen to that/that specific professional lecture online.)

What does “foredrag” mean, and how is it different from “forelesning”?

Both can be translated as “lecture”, but there’s a nuance:

• foredrag
  A talk / lecture / presentation, usually a one‑off or standalone talk, often at conferences, events, public meetings. More like a “guest lecture” or a “speech”.

• forelesning
  A lecture in an educational setting, especially at university, part of a course or class schedule.

So:

• et faglig foredrag – a professional/subject-specific talk (maybe at a conference or webinar)
• en forelesning i kjemi – a lecture in chemistry (as part of a course)

What does “på nettet” literally mean, and why is it “på” and not “i”?

Literally, “på nettet” means “on the net”, and idiomatically it means “online / on the internet”.

• nett = net (here: the internet)
• nettet = the net (definite form)
• på nettet = on the net / on the internet

Norwegian uses the preposition “på” here, where English also uses “on”:

• på TV – on TV
• på radio – on the radio
• på nettet – on the internet

So “på nettet” is the normal way to say “online / on the internet”.

Is there a difference between “på nett” and “på nettet”?

They are very close in meaning, but there is a small nuance:

• på nett
  More like “online” as a state:

  • Jeg er på nett. – I’m online.
  • Butikken er bare på nett. – The shop is online-only.

• på nettet
  More like “on the internet” as a place / platform:

  • Jeg fant det på nettet. – I found it on the internet.
  • Jeg hører et foredrag på nettet. – I listen to a lecture on the internet.

In many contexts they can overlap, but in your sentence “på nettet” is the most idiomatic choice.

Can the time expression go at the end: “Jeg hører et faglig foredrag på nettet senere på dagen”?

Yes. That word order is completely natural and probably the most neutral in everyday speech:

• Jeg hører et faglig foredrag på nettet senere på dagen.
  (Later in the day I listen to a professional lecture online.)

Putting the time expression first:

• Senere på dagen hører jeg et faglig foredrag på nettet.

adds a bit more emphasis on the time and is stylistically a bit more “narrative” or “story-like”. Both are correct; it’s a matter of emphasis and style.