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Først når deigen er ferdig, begynner vi å bake sammen.

Først når deigen er ferdig, begynner vi å bake sammen.
Only when the dough is finished do we start baking together.
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Questions & Answers about Først når deigen er ferdig, begynner vi å bake sammen.

Why does the sentence start with Først når ...? What kind of structure is that?

Først når ... means only when ... / not until .... It’s a common way to emphasize that something happens later, and only after a condition is met. Here it highlights that the baking doesn’t start before the dough is ready.

Why is the word order begynner vi and not vi begynner?

Because Norwegian follows the V2 rule in main clauses: the finite verb (here begynner) must be in the second position.
When you front something else (here the time expression Først når deigen er ferdig), the verb comes next, and the subject (vi) moves after it:

  • Først når ..., begynner vi ... If you don’t front anything, you get normal order:
  • Vi begynner å bake sammen først når deigen er ferdig.
Why is there a comma after ferdig?

Because the sentence begins with a subordinate clause (når deigen er ferdig), and Norwegian typically puts a comma after a fronted subordinate clause before the main clause:

  • Først når deigen er ferdig, begynner vi ...
Is når here a question word like when?, or something else?

Here når is a subordinating conjunction meaning when (introducing a subordinate clause), not an interrogative question word. It connects the condition/time clause to the main clause.

What’s the grammar of deigen? Why not deig?

Deigen is the definite form of deig (dough) and means the dough (a specific dough both speaker and listener know about).
Deig (indefinite) would sound more like dough in general or some dough, depending on context.

Why is it deigen er ferdig and not something like deigen blir ferdig?

er ferdig describes a state: the dough is ready/finished.
blir ferdig focuses more on the process/change: the dough gets finished / becomes ready. Both can be possible, but er ferdig is very natural for “it’s ready”.

What part of speech is ferdig, and does it have to agree with deigen?

ferdig is an adjective meaning ready/finished used in a predicative position (after er). It agrees like other adjectives:

  • common gender: deigen er ferdig
  • neuter: huset er ferdig (also ferdig in this case) You’d see clearer agreement with adjectives like stor/stort (e.g., bilen er stor, huset er stort).
Why do we need å in begynner vi å bake?

After the verb begynne, Norwegian normally uses å + infinitive to mean to + verb:

  • begynne å bake = begin to bake So å is the infinitive marker, similar to English to.
What exactly is å bake sammen doing grammatically?

å bake is an infinitive phrase functioning as the complement of begynner (what you begin to do).
sammen is an adverb meaning together, modifying the action bake.

Can sammen be placed somewhere else?

Yes, Norwegian is fairly flexible with sammen. Common options include:

  • begynner vi å bake sammen (very natural)
  • begynner vi sammen å bake (possible, more emphasis on “together”)
  • begynner vi å sammen bake (generally not preferred)
Could I rewrite the sentence without fronting the clause, and would it change the emphasis?

Yes:

  • Vi begynner å bake sammen først når deigen er ferdig. Meaning stays the same, but the emphasis shifts. The original version emphasizes the timing/condition (only when the dough is ready), because that part comes first.