Log inSign up

Hvis lekkasjen blir verre, ringer jeg forsikringen igjen og spør om innboforsikringen dekker alt.

Hvis lekkasjen blir verre, ringer jeg forsikringen igjen og spør om innboforsikringen dekker alt.
If the leak gets worse, I call the insurance again and ask whether the home contents insurance covers everything.
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Norwegian grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Norwegian now

Questions & Answers about Hvis lekkasjen blir verre, ringer jeg forsikringen igjen og spør om innboforsikringen dekker alt.

Why is the present tense used in Hvis lekkasjen blir verre if it refers to the future?

Norwegian commonly uses the present tense in if/when clauses to talk about the future. So Hvis lekkasjen blir verre literally looks present, but it functions like English If the leak gets worse (in the future). You don’t need a future form here.

Why is there a comma after verre?

Because Hvis lekkasjen blir verre is a subordinate clause placed first, and Norwegian normally separates it from the main clause with a comma:

  • Hvis X, Y.
    This is standard written punctuation.
Why does the word order change to ringer jeg and not jeg ringer?

Norwegian has V2 word order (the verb is in the second position) in main clauses. When you start with a subordinate clause, that whole clause counts as “position 1”, so the finite verb comes next:

  • Hvis …, ringer jeg …
    Not: Hvis …, jeg ringer …
Why does it say lekkasjen and not just lekkasje?

Lekkasje is a common-gender noun, and lekkasjen is the definite form: the leak. In context, it’s usually a specific known leak (yours), so definite form is natural:

  • en lekkasje = a leak
  • lekkasjen = the leak
What’s the difference between blir verre and er verre?
  • blir verre = gets worse / becomes worse (a change over time)
  • er verre = is worse (a state/comparison at a given time)

Here the meaning is “if it worsens,” so blir verre fits best.

Why is verre used, and what is it the comparative of?

Verre is the comparative form meaning worse. It’s irregular and corresponds to dårlig (bad):

  • dårlig = bad
  • verre = worse
  • verst = worst
Is ringer jeg forsikringen literally “I call the insurance”? Who/what is forsikringen?

Yes, it’s common shorthand. forsikringen here usually means the insurance company / the insurer / the insurance provider (the one you have). You could also be more explicit, e.g. forsikringsselskapet, but forsikringen is very idiomatic in everyday speech.

Do I need a preposition like til with ringe?

Often no. Ringe can take a direct object:

  • Jeg ringer forsikringen. = I call the insurance company.

You can also say:

  • Jeg ringer til forsikringen / til forsikringsselskapet.
    Both exist; the direct-object version is very common.
Where can igjen go, and does its position change the meaning?

Igjen usually means again. Common placements are:

  • ringer jeg forsikringen igjen (very natural)
  • igjen ringer jeg … (more marked/emphatic)
  • ringer jeg igjen forsikringen (possible but usually sounds less natural)

In this sentence, placing igjen after the object is smooth and typical.

Why does it say og spør (present tense) instead of something like og spørrer?

The present tense of å spørre is spør:

  • jeg spør
    There is no form spørrer in standard Bokmål. The sentence coordinates two present-tense verbs: ringer and spør.
What does spør om mean here—“ask about” or “ask if”?

Here spør om means ask whether/if:

  • spør om innboforsikringen dekker alt = ask whether the home contents insurance covers everything

Spør om can sometimes mean “ask about,” but when it introduces a full clause like … dekker alt, it’s clearly ask whether.

Why is innboforsikringen one long word, and how should I think about it?

Norwegian frequently uses compound nouns. innboforsikringen = innbo (household contents) + forsikring (insurance) + definite ending -en:

  • en innboforsikring = a contents insurance policy
  • innboforsikringen = the contents insurance policy

In writing, these are typically joined into one word.

Why does it say dekker alt and not something like dekker det?

Alt means everything and is used when you mean full coverage in general:

  • dekker alt = covers everything

If you meant “covers it” (a specific item/expense already mentioned), you’d use det:

  • dekker det = covers it

Here the speaker is asking about total coverage, so alt fits.