Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe før bussen kom. - I managed to drink coffee before the bus came.

It usually implies there was some time pressure or a deadline (here: before the bus came), and you just fit the action in before that point. It’s a bit stronger and more “deadline‑focused” than simply had time.

How is the verb å rekke conjugated, and what are its other common meanings?

Basic conjugation of å rekke (in this time‑related meaning):

infinitive: å rekke
present: rekker
past (preterite): rakk
past participle: rukket

Examples with the time meaning:

Jeg rekker å spise. – I have time to eat.
Jeg rakk det ikke. – I didn’t manage (I didn’t have time).
Rakk du bussen? – Did you catch the bus (in time)?

Å rekke also has other meanings:

to reach (physically):
- Jeg rekker ikke opp til hylla. – I can’t reach up to the shelf.
to be enough / extend as far as:
- Køen rekker helt ut på gata. – The queue reaches all the way out onto the street.

Context tells you which meaning is intended. In the sentence you gave, it is clearly about time.

Why is it rakk å drikke and not just rakk drikke? Do we always need å?

In Norwegian, when one verb governs another verb in the infinitive, you almost always need the infinitive marker å in front of the second verb:

rakk å drikke – managed to drink
liker å lese – like to read
prøver å sove – try to sleep

So the pattern here is:

[main verb] + å + [infinitive]
rakk + å + drikke

You cannot say ✗ rakk drikke in standard Norwegian when you mean managed to drink. That would sound clearly wrong to native speakers.

(There are a few special verbs that don’t take å in this way, like vil, skal, kan, må, but rekke is not one of those; it behaves like a normal verb.)

What is the structure of å drikke kaffe here? Is it like to drink coffee in English?

Yes. å drikke kaffe is an infinitive phrase, functioning as the thing that was “managed”:

å drikke = to drink
kaffe = coffee

So:

Jeg rakk [å drikke kaffe]
→ I managed [to drink coffee].

The subject of å drikke is jeg, even though it’s not repeated. Norwegian, like English, doesn’t repeat the subject inside such infinitive clauses when it’s the same person:

Jeg prøver å sove. – I’m trying to sleep.
Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe. – I managed to drink coffee.

Why is it før bussen kom (past tense) and not før bussen har kommet or før bussen kommer?

Norwegian often uses simple past (preterite) in both clauses to describe a sequence of completed events in the past:

Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe (past)
før bussen kom (past)

This is the most natural way to narrate past events.

Alternatives:

før bussen har kommet – grammatically possible, but here it sounds off; har kommet (present perfect) is usually used when the result is relevant now or up to a reference point, not in this simple narrative.
før bussen kommer – would describe something in the future, often with a future marker in the main clause:
- Jeg skal rekke å drikke kaffe før bussen kommer.
  → I’m going to manage to drink coffee before the bus comes.

So with rakk, which is past, kom is the natural choice.

Can I put før bussen kom at the beginning of the sentence?

Yes. That is perfectly correct, and very natural:

Før bussen kom, rakk jeg å drikke kaffe.

When the subordinate clause (før bussen kom) comes first, the main clause that follows uses inversion (verb in second position):

… rakk jeg å drikke kaffe, not … jeg rakk å drikke kaffe.

Summary:

Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe før bussen kom.
Før bussen kom, rakk jeg å drikke kaffe.

Both are correct; the difference is just emphasis and style, not meaning.

Why is it bussen and not just buss? What does the -en ending do?

In Norwegian, the definite article is usually attached as a suffix to the noun:

en buss – a bus (indefinite, singular)
bussen – the bus (definite, singular)

So bussen means the bus.

In this sentence, før bussen kom implies a specific, known bus:
the one you were expecting, referring to, or usually take.

If you said før en buss kom, it would sound like before a bus came (any random bus), which is usually not what you mean when talking about catching your bus.

Could I leave out kom and just say før bussen?

Normally, no. In Norwegian, a full subordinate clause after før needs a verb:

før bussen kom – before the bus came
før vi dro – before we left
før jeg spiste – before I ate

Just før bussen sounds incomplete unless there’s very strong context and you’re using elliptical speech in a conversation (and even then, it’s more like an unfinished sentence).

So for a correct, standard sentence, keep kom.

Can I say før at bussen kom like in some other languages (e.g. before that the bus came)?

In standard Norwegian, you do not say før at here.

You simply use før as the subordinating conjunction:

før bussen kom – before the bus came

At is used to introduce content clauses (like that‑clauses in English):

Jeg vet at bussen kom. – I know that the bus came.

But før already works as the conjunction on its own; adding at sounds non‑standard or dialectal and is usually considered incorrect in written standard Norwegian.

What is the difference between Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe før bussen kom and Jeg hadde tid til å drikke kaffe før bussen kom?

Both can be translated as I had time to drink coffee before the bus came, but there is a nuance:

Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe …
– Focus on managing within a time limit, a bit more dynamic and natural in everyday speech when talking about catching/just making something in time.
Jeg hadde tid til å drikke kaffe …
– More neutral; simply describes that there was enough time available. It doesn’t highlight the “deadline feeling” as strongly.

In many contexts, both are possible, but Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe … fits especially well with the idea “… before the bus came” because it suggests you just managed it in time.

Is rekke also used with nouns, like Jeg rakk bussen? Does that mean the same thing?

Yes. With a noun object, å rekke often means to catch (in time):

Jeg rakk bussen. – I caught the bus (I got there in time).
Hun rakk toget. – She caught the train.

This is related to, but not identical with, Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe:

Jeg rakk bussen. – I made it to the bus itself (caught it).
Jeg rakk å drikke kaffe før bussen kom. – I managed to drink coffee before that bus arrived.

So yes, same verb, same “time pressure” idea, but the construction changes:

with verb: rekke å + infinitive
with noun: rekke + noun

How is rakk pronounced, and is there anything tricky about pronunciation in this sentence?

Approximate pronunciation (bokmål, standard East Norwegian):

Jeg – like yai (IPA: /jæi/ or /jæ/)
rakk – short a as in English luck, and a short, crisp k: /rak/
å – like British English awe: /oː/
drikke – DRI-kke, with a short i and double k: /ˈdrikːə/
kaffe – KAF-fe, short a, double f: /ˈkafːə/
før – similar to British fur but with rounded lips: /føːr/
bussen – BUS-sen, very short u (like in book), double s: /ˈbʉsːən/
kom – like English kom in kompany without the p: /kom/

Main stress falls on Jeg RAKK å DRIKKE KAFF-e før BUS-sen KOM, with each content word carrying a clear stress.