Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Hun gjør hagearbeid i blomsterbedet og fjerner ugress i stille vær. - She does gardening in the flower bed and removes weeds in calm weather.

When two nouns form one concept, they are normally written together as one word. Writing hage arbeid would look like two separate words, not a fixed concept.

More examples:

husarbeid (housework) = hus
- arbeid
barnehage (kindergarten) = barn (child) + hage (garden)
blomsterbed (flowerbed) = blomster (flowers) + bed (bed)

What is the difference between blomsterbed and blomsterbedet?

The difference is indefinite vs. definite form, just like “a flowerbed” vs. “the flowerbed” in English:

et blomsterbed = a flowerbed (indefinite, neuter)
blomsterbedet = the flowerbed (definite, neuter)

In the sentence:

i blomsterbedet = in the flowerbed

This implies a specific flowerbed that both the speaker and listener know about, e.g. in her flowerbed or in the flowerbed in her garden.

Why is the preposition i used in i blomsterbedet? Could you say på blomsterbedet?

Here, i blomsterbedet literally means “in the flowerbed” and is the normal choice.

i is used for inside / within a limited area:
- i hagen – in the garden
- i byen – in the city
- i blomsterbedet – in the flowerbed (inside that planted area)

På blomsterbedet would sound odd; på is usually “on / on top of,” and suggests being on the surface, like:

på bordet – on the table
på taket – on the roof

So for working within the area of a flowerbed, i blomsterbedet is correct.

What exactly does ugress mean? Is it countable like “weeds” in English?

Ugress means “weed(s)”, but grammatically it behaves more like an uncountable mass noun in Norwegian.

It is a neuter noun: et ugress (in theory), but in practice you mostly see it without an article, like:
- fjerner ugress – removes weeds
- luker ugress – weeds (verb) / pulls weeds

You normally don’t say ugresser in the plural the way English says weeds; ugress already covers the idea of multiple weeds.

Is there a difference between fjerner ugress and luker ugress?

Both are used when talking about getting rid of weeds, but there’s a nuance:

fjerner ugress = removes weeds
- More neutral and general; could be by pulling, spraying, etc.
luker ugress or just luker = weeds (the garden)
- This usually implies pulling or picking weeds by hand.
- Common expression: å luke i hagen – to weed in the garden.

In your sentence, fjerner ugress is perfectly natural; luker ugress would be a bit more specific about the method (hand-weeding).

Why do we use the plain present tense gjør and fjerner to mean “is doing / is removing”? Isn’t there a continuous form?

Norwegian does not have a separate progressive/continuous tense like English “is doing” or “is removing”.
The simple present covers both:

Hun gjør hagearbeid.
- can mean: She does gardening (in general).
- or: She is doing gardening (right now).
Hun fjerner ugress.
- can mean: She removes weeds (as a regular task).
- or: She is removing weeds (right now).

Context (and sometimes adverbs) tells you whether it’s habitual or right now. In this sentence, it most naturally feels like right now.

What does i stille vær mean literally, and is stille vær a common expression?

i stille vær literally means “in calm weather”.

stille = quiet, still, calm (often about sound or wind)
vær = weather

So stille vær is calm weather, often implying no wind, no storm, nothing rough. It’s understandable and acceptable Norwegian.

Other common ways to say something similar:

i rolig vær – in calm/quiet weather
i vindstille vær – in windless weather
når det er stille – when it is calm/quiet

All of these suggest that the weather is peaceful and not windy.

Could the phrase i stille vær be placed somewhere else in the sentence?

Yes. Norwegian word order is fairly flexible for adverbials like this. The original:

Hun gjør hagearbeid i blomsterbedet og fjerner ugress i stille vær.

Possible variations (all grammatical, with small nuance changes):

Hun gjør hagearbeid i blomsterbedet og fjerner ugress når det er stille vær.
(when there is calm weather — slightly more explicit)
I stille vær gjør hun hagearbeid i blomsterbedet og fjerner ugress.
(In calm weather she does gardening in the flowerbed and removes weeds. — emphasises the condition “in calm weather”.)

But if you move i stille vær, keep it near the part it logically modifies. The original sentence already sounds very natural.

Why is it Hun and not omitted? Can Norwegian drop the subject like some other languages?

Norwegian normally requires an explicit subject pronoun, like English.

So:

Hun gjør hagearbeid … is correct.
Gjør hagearbeid … (without hun) would be incomplete or sound like an imperative: “Do gardening …”

Unlike Spanish or Italian, Norwegian is not a “pro-drop” language in standard usage. You almost always keep the subject pronoun:
jeg, du, han, hun, vi, dere, de.

What are the genders and forms of hagearbeid, blomsterbedet, and ugress?

hagearbeid
- Built on arbeid (neuter: et arbeid).
- Very often used as an uncountable mass noun, usually without an article:
  - Hun gjør hagearbeid. – She does gardening.
- In practice you rarely need to say et hagearbeid.
blomsterbedet
- Base form: et blomsterbed – a flowerbed (neuter).
- Definite singular: blomsterbedet – the flowerbed.
ugress
- Neuter, mass noun: conceptually weed(s).
- Usually without article or plural: fjerner ugress, luker ugress.

How do you pronounce gjør, hagearbeid, blomsterbedet, and ugress?

Approximate pronunciations (Bokmål, standard Eastern accent; stressed syllables in caps):

gjør → roughly “yur”
- IPA: /jøːr/
- The gj- is like a soft y-sound, not a hard g.
hagearbeid → HA-ge-ar-beid
- IPA: /ˈhɑːɡəɑrˌbæɪd/ (approximate)
- Main stress on HA, secondary on arbeid.
- The -ei- in arbeid is like English “eye”.
blomsterbedet → BLOM-ster-be-det
- IPA: /ˈblʊm.stərˌbeː.də/ (approximate)
- Main stress on BLOM.
ugress → UU-gress (with a long u like a rounded “ee”)
- IPA: /ˈʉːɡres/
- Stress on the first syllable.

Are there more natural or shorter alternative ways to say this sentence in Norwegian?

The original is fine, but you could say similar things in slightly different ways:

Hun gjør hagearbeid i blomsterbedet og luker ugress når det er stille.
– She does gardening in the flowerbed and weeds when it is calm.
Hun steller i blomsterbedet og luker ugress når været er stille.
– She tends the flowerbed and weeds when the weather is calm.
Hun jobber i blomsterbedet og fjerner ugress når det er stille vær.
– She works in the flowerbed and removes weeds when the weather is calm.

All of these keep the same basic meaning, just with slightly different common verbs and phrasing.