Questions & Answers about Jeg er sent ute, så jeg rekker ikke bussen.
Why does sent ute mean late? Isn’t ute literally out?
Yes, ute literally means out, but sent ute is a very common fixed expression meaning late (to something) / running late. Think of it as (being) late out the door / late in getting going.
You’ll also see related phrases like å være tidlig ute = to be early (ahead of time).
What’s the grammar of Jeg er sent ute—is sent an adjective or an adverb here?
Sent is usually taught as an adverb meaning late, but in this expression it behaves like a predicative complement with å være (er): er sent ute = am late (out/away). In practice, just learn sent ute as a chunk.
Why is there a comma before så?
Because så here links two independent clauses:
- Jeg er sent ute (main clause)
- så jeg rekker ikke bussen (main clause with a conjunction meaning so)
In Norwegian it’s standard to put a comma before coordinating conjunctions like og, men, for, eller, så when they connect two main clauses.