Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale.

The trade union is trying to negotiate a better collective agreement.

Breakdown of Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale.

• en: a
• å: to
• bedre: better
• prøve: to try
• fagforeningen: the trade union
• tariffavtalen: the collective agreement
• forhandle fram: to negotiate

Questions & Answers about Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale.

What does the ending -en in fagforeningen mean, and why isn’t it just fagforening?

In Norwegian, the definite article (the) is usually attached to the end of the noun:

• fagforening = a trade union
• fagforeningen = the trade union

So fagforeningen literally means “the trade union.”
Norwegian normally uses the definite form when talking about a specific, known entity – here, a particular union that both speaker and listener know about.

Is fagforening a common gender word, and could I also say ei fagforening?

Yes, fagforening is a common gender noun. In Bokmål you’ll most often see:

• en fagforening (indefinite singular)
• fagforeningen (definite singular)

In more Nynorsk-influenced or dialectal Bokmål, you might also see ei fagforening, because many speakers treat it as a feminine noun in speech. Standard written Bokmål, especially in formal contexts, tends to prefer en fagforening.

Why is the verb prøver used, and how does it relate to English “is trying”?

Prøver is the present tense of å prøve (to try).

Norwegian does not form a separate continuous tense like English is trying. Instead, the simple present tense covers both:

• Fagforeningen prøver … = The union tries / is trying …

Context usually makes it clear whether it’s a general habit (tries) or an ongoing action (is trying). In this sentence, it’s naturally understood as is trying.

Why do we say prøver å forhandle and not just prøver forhandle?

In Norwegian, when one verb is followed by another verb in the infinitive, you normally need the infinitive marker å:

• prøver å forhandle = tries to negotiate

Leaving out å here (prøver forhandle) is incorrect in standard Norwegian.
Some modal verbs (like kan, vil, skal) do not take å, but prøve does. For example:

• kan forhandle (can negotiate) – no å
• prøver å forhandle (tries to negotiate) – must have å

What exactly does forhandle fram mean, and is fram necessary?

Å forhandle means to negotiate.
Å forhandle fram noe is closer to to negotiate something into existence / to work something out through negotiation.

• forhandle = negotiate (the process)
• forhandle fram en avtale = negotiate and arrive at an agreement

You can say forhandle om en avtale (negotiate about an agreement), focusing on the topic.
Forhandle fram emphasizes successfully producing or achieving a result through negotiation, which fits well with the idea of securing a better agreement.

What’s the difference between fram and frem, and could I use frem here?

Fram and frem are spelling variants of the same word, meaning roughly forward / forth / out.

• fram is more common in modern, everyday Bokmål.
• frem is a bit more traditional or formal but still completely correct.

In this sentence, both are fine:

• forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale
• forhandle frem en bedre tariffavtale

The meaning is the same.

Why is it en bedre tariffavtale and not en tarifffavtale bedre?

In Norwegian, attributive adjectives (adjectives placed before the noun) normally come between the article and the noun:

• article + adjective + noun
• en bedre tariffavtale = a better collective agreement

Putting the adjective after the noun (en tariffavtale bedre) is not normal Norwegian word order and would be ungrammatical in this context. (Adjectives can come after the noun in some special structures, but not like this.)

What form is bedre, and why don’t we say mer god?

Bedre is the comparative form of god (good), just like English better is the comparative of good:

• god – good
• bedre – better
• best – best

Like English, Norwegian uses a special irregular form here, not mer god (“more good”). So en bedre tariffavtale literally corresponds to “a better tariff agreement.”

What kind of word is tariffavtale, and why is it written as one word?

Tariffavtale is a compound noun, made from:

• tariff – tariff, wage scale, collectively agreed pay rates
• avtale – agreement

Norwegian almost always writes compounds as a single word, not separated by spaces. So:

• tariffavtale (correct)
• tariff avtale (incorrect as a single concept)

The whole compound means a collective agreement (usually between employers and a union, about wages and working conditions).

Why is it en bedre tariffavtale (indefinite) and not den bedre tariffavtalen (definite)?

Both forms are possible, but they mean slightly different things:

• en bedre tariffavtale – a better collective agreement (in general; any better agreement than the current one)
• den bedre tariffavtalen – the better collective agreement (a specific better agreement that is already identified)

In this sentence, the union is trying to negotiate some better agreement than the one they have now, not referring to a specific already-defined new agreement, so the indefinite form makes sense.

Why is the word order Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram … and not something like Fagforeningen å forhandle fram prøver …?

Norwegian main clauses follow a fairly strict pattern: Subject – Verb – (rest).

• Subject: Fagforeningen
• Verb: prøver
• Rest: å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale (an infinitive clause functioning as the object/complement)

So Fagforeningen prøver … is the natural word order.
You cannot split prøver from its infinitive construction in the way English sometimes allows; å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale must stay together after prøver.

How would this sentence look as a yes–no question in Norwegian?

In yes–no questions, Norwegian usually puts the verb before the subject:

• Statement: Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale.
• Question: Prøver fagforeningen å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale?
  = Is the union trying to negotiate a better collective agreement?

The rest of the sentence (å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale) remains in the same order.

Are there any tricky pronunciation points in Fagforeningen prøver å forhandle fram en bedre tariffavtale for English speakers?

A few key points:

• ø in prøver is a rounded front vowel, similar to the vowel in French peu.
• gn in fagforeningen is pronounced with a “ng” sound [ŋ] before the en ending: roughly fag-fo-re-ning-en.
• tariff has stress on the last syllable: ta-RIFF.
• v is always a v sound (never like English w), e.g. in prøver, tariffavtale.

Mastering these sounds will make the sentence sound much more natural.