Et langt nattskift kan være tungt, selv om skiftplanen er tydelig.

A long night shift can be hard, even if the shift schedule is clear.

Breakdown of Et langt nattskift kan være tungt, selv om skiftplanen er tydelig.

• være: to be
• et: a
• lang: long
• kunne: can
• selv om: even if
• tydelig: clear
• nattskiftet: the night shift
• tung: hard
• skiftplanen: the shift schedule

Questions & Answers about Et langt nattskift kan være tungt, selv om skiftplanen er tydelig.

Why is it Et langt nattskift and not En lang nattskift?

Norwegian has grammatical gender. Skift (and therefore nattskift) is a neuter noun, so it uses:

• the neuter article et (not en),
• the neuter adjective ending -t → langt (not lang).

Pattern:

• et langt nattskift
• en lang dag (dag is masculine)
• ei lang natt (natt is feminine in many dialects; written Bokmål often uses en natt)

So et langt nattskift is just adjective–noun agreement in the neuter gender.

Why is the adjective langt and not lang?

Adjectives in Norwegian agree with the gender and number of the noun:

• Masculine/feminine singular: lang
  
  • en lang dag, ei lang natt
• Neuter singular: langt
  
  • et langt nattskift
• Plural (all genders): lange
  
  • lange skift

Since nattskift is neuter singular, the correct form of the adjective is langt.

What exactly does nattskift mean, and why is it one word?

Nattskift is a compound noun:

• natt = night
• skift = shift

Put together: nattskift = night shift.

In Norwegian, many combinations that are two words in English become one compound word:

• natt
  • tog → nattog (night train)
• sommer
  • jobb → sommerjobb (summer job)

So nattskift is written as one word, not natt skift.

Why is it kan være tungt and not just er tungt?

Kan være expresses possibility or tendency, not an absolute fact.

• Et langt nattskift kan være tungt
  = A long night shift can be hard / may be hard (often, in many cases).

If you say:

• Et langt nattskift er tungt,
  you sound like you’re stating a general, always-true fact: a long night shift is hard (as a rule).

Using kan være makes the statement more general and probabilistic, not absolute.

Why is tungt used here instead of something like vanskelig?

Both can be translated with “hard”, but they focus on different kinds of difficulty:

• tung / tungt

  • literally: heavy
  • figuratively: physically or mentally exhausting / burdensome
  • fits well for long work shifts, emotional burdens, etc.

• vanskelig

  • difficult, complicated (intellectually or in terms of complexity)
  • used for hard tasks, hard questions, difficult problems.

So:

• Et langt nattskift kan være tungt = tiring, burdensome.
• Oppgaven er vanskelig = the task is difficult (to solve/understand).

What does selv om mean, and is it one word or two?

Selv om (always written as two words) means “even though / although”.

• Et langt nattskift kan være tungt, selv om skiftplanen er tydelig.
  = A long night shift can be hard, even though the shift plan is clear.

There is also a more informal spelling selvom, but in standard written Bokmål you should prefer selv om as two words.

Why is there a comma before selv om?

Selv om introduces a subordinate clause (a dependent clause). In Norwegian, when a new clause like this is added after a main clause, it’s normally separated by a comma:

• Main clause: Et langt nattskift kan være tungt
• Subordinate clause: selv om skiftplanen er tydelig

Pattern:

• [Main clause], selv om [subordinate clause].

So the comma marks the boundary between the two clauses.

Why is the word order selv om skiftplanen er tydelig and not something like selv om er skiftplanen tydelig?

In the clause introduced by selv om, the word order follows the normal statement order in Norwegian:

• Subject – Verb – (other elements)

So:

• skiftplanen (subject)
• er (verb)
• tydelig (adjective/predicate)

→ selv om skiftplanen er tydelig

Verb-second (V2) word order is important in main clauses, but in subordinate clauses (like those after selv om), the verb usually comes after the subject, just like in English.

Why is it skiftplanen with -en at the end?

The -en ending marks the definite form of the noun:

• en skiftplan = a shift plan / a rota
• skiftplanen = the shift plan / the rota

In the sentence, we’re talking about a specific, known schedule (for example, the one the workers have), so the definite form skiftplanen is used.

What is the difference between tydelig and klar here?

Both can mean “clear”, but with slightly different nuances:

• tydelig

  • clear, easy to see/read/understand
  • emphasizes that something is unambiguous and well expressed.

• klar

  • can also mean clear (understandable), but also ready, prepared, bright (light), etc.

In the context of a written plan or schedule, tydelig strongly suggests:

• the plan is easy to understand,
• there is no confusion about it.

You could say skiftplanen er klar, but that more often means “the shift plan is ready/finished” rather than “easy to read/understand.”