Læreren forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid med et enkelt eksempel.

The teacher explains the difference between past and future with a simple example.

Breakdown of Læreren forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid med et enkelt eksempel.

• et: a
• med: with
• og: and
• enkel: simple
• forklare: to explain
• læreren: the teacher
• mellom: between
• fortiden: the past
• framtiden: the future
• forskjellen: the difference
• eksempelet: the example

Questions & Answers about Læreren forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid med et enkelt eksempel.

Why is it læreren and not just lærer?

Lærer means teacher in general (an unspecified teacher).
Læreren means the teacher (a specific teacher).

In Norwegian Bokmål, the definite article (the) is usually added as an ending:

• lærer = a teacher
• læreren = the teacher

So Læreren forklarer … = The teacher explains …

What verb form is forklarer, and how would I say “is explaining”?

Forklarer is the present tense of å forklare (to explain).

Norwegian does not normally distinguish between “explains” and “is explaining” the way English does. Both are usually just present tense:

• Læreren forklarer forskjellen …
  = The teacher explains the difference …
  or The teacher is explaining the difference …

Context decides whether you understand it as a general fact (often explains) or something happening right now (is explaining).

What is the difference between forskjell and forskjellen?

• forskjell = difference (indefinite, general)
• forskjellen = the difference (definite, specific)

In the sentence, we are talking about one specific difference: the difference between past and future. That’s why it is:

• forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid
  = explains the difference between past and future.

Grammatically:

• en forskjell (a difference) – masculine
• forskjellen (the difference)

Why is the preposition mellom used here, and why do we say mellom X og Y?

Mellom means between.

In Norwegian, when you talk about the difference between two things, the usual pattern is:

• forskjellen mellom X og Y
  = the difference between X and Y

So:

• forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid
  = the difference between past and future

You normally need og after mellom when you mention two items explicitly: mellom A og B.

What exactly do fortid and framtid mean, and are they grammatical terms?

Literally:

• fortid = past time / the past
• framtid = future time / the future

They are everyday words, but they can also be used as names of verb tenses in school explanations:

• fortid – past tense
• nåtid – present tense
• framtid – future

More technical grammar terms you might also see:

• preteritum for simple past
• futurum for future

In this sentence, fortid and framtid are just the normal words for past and future.

I’ve seen framtid and fremtid. Which one is correct?

Both are correct in Bokmål:

• framtid – more Nynorsk-like, and also allowed in Bokmål
• fremtid – more traditional Bokmål spelling

They mean exactly the same thing: future.
In your sentence, framtid is used, but fremtid could appear in other texts with no change in meaning.

Why is it med et enkelt eksempel and not something like med et enkelt eksempelet?

Eksempel (example) is a neuter noun:

• et eksempel = an example
• eksempelet = the example

Here we want “with a simple example”, not “with the simple example”, so we use the indefinite form:

• med et enkelt eksempel
  = with a simple example

Using eksempelet would mean the example, referring to some already-known specific example, which is not what the sentence says.

Why is the article et and the adjective enkelt used with eksempel?

Because eksempel is a neuter noun in Norwegian.
Neuter singular indefinite uses:

• article et
• adjective ending -t

So:

• et eksempel – a(n) example
• et enkelt eksempel – a simple example

If it were a masculine noun, you’d see en enkel X, and if feminine, ei enkel X (in forms where feminine is used).

Could the word order be Læreren forklarer med et enkelt eksempel forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid?

Yes, that word order is grammatically possible:

• Læreren forklarer med et enkelt eksempel forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid.

The difference is nuance and flow:

• Læreren forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid med et enkelt eksempel.
  First tells you what the teacher explains (the difference), then how (with an example). This is the most natural and common order.

• Moving med et enkelt eksempel earlier can sound slightly more marked or stylistic, but it’s still correct Norwegian.

Why is it et enkelt eksempel and not en enkel eksempel?

Because eksempel is neuter, not masculine.

In Norwegian:

• en is the masculine article.
• et is the neuter article.

Since eksempel is neuter, it must use et:

• et eksempel (not en eksempel)
• et enkelt eksempel (not en enkel eksempel)

The adjective enkel also takes a neuter -t ending in this form: enkelt.

Can med et enkelt eksempel be translated as “by using a simple example” or only “with a simple example”?

It naturally covers both ideas:

• Literal: with a simple example
• Idiomatic: by using a simple example

The preposition med is flexible and often corresponds to English with / using / by means of, depending on context. Here, “with” and “by using” are both good translations.

Is there any difference in meaning between forklarer forskjellen mellom … and something like forklarer hva som er forskjellen mellom …?

Both are possible, but they differ a bit in style:

• forklarer forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid
  = explains the difference between past and future (short, direct)

• forklarer hva som er forskjellen mellom fortid og framtid
  = explains what the difference is between past and future (more explicit, slightly heavier)

The original version is more compact and is the most natural formulation in this context.

Is Læreren always capitalized, or is that just because it starts the sentence?

It’s capitalized only because it is the first word in the sentence.

Normally:

• læreren (lowercase l) in the middle of a sentence
• Læreren with capital L at the beginning of a sentence or in a title.

Norwegian does not capitalize common nouns like Teacher in English unless they start a sentence or are part of a name/title.