Jeg skriver i min egen dagbok hver kveld.

I

Breakdown of Jeg skriver i min egen dagbok hver kveld.

• i: in
• skrive: to write
• hver: every

Questions & Answers about Jeg skriver i min egen dagbok hver kveld.

What tense is skriver, and does it mean I write or I am writing?

Skriver is the present tense of the verb å skrive (to write).

Norwegian has only one present tense form, and it covers both:

• English I write
• and I am writing

So Jeg skriver i min egen dagbok hver kveld can be translated as:

• I write in my own diary every evening, or
• I am writing in my own diary every evening (as a habit)

Context decides which English form sounds more natural; in this sentence, it describes a regular habit.

Why is the preposition i used here? Could it be på instead?

In Norwegian, i literally means in, and it’s the natural preposition for writing in something that is seen as a container or a book:

• skrive i en bok – to write in a book
• skrive i dagboka – to write in the diary

På (on) is used in other expressions:

• skrive på tavla – write on the board
• skrive på et brev – to be working on a letter (literally writing on a letter)

So Jeg skriver i min egen dagbok is the normal, idiomatic choice. Jeg skriver på min egen dagbok would sound wrong in standard Norwegian for this meaning.

Why is it min egen dagbok instead of just min dagbok or just dagbok?