Jeg legger nøklene i skuffen så jeg ikke mister dem.

Because legge and ligge are different verbs in Norwegian.

• å legge = to lay / to put something somewhere
• å ligge = to lie / to be located

In this sentence, the subject is actively putting the keys into the drawer, so Norwegian uses legger:

• Jeg legger nøklene i skuffen = I put the keys in the drawer

If the keys were already there, you would use ligger:

• Nøklene ligger i skuffen = The keys are in the drawer

This is similar to the English difference between lay and lie, although Norwegian uses it more consistently.

Nøklene is the definite plural form of nøkkel:

• en nøkkel = a key
• nøkler = keys
• nøklene = the keys

So Jeg legger nøklene i skuffen means I put the keys in the drawer, not just I put keys in the drawer.

Norwegian often uses the definite form where English might also use the.

Skuffen is the definite singular form:

• en skuff = a drawer
• skuffen = the drawer

So i skuffen means in the drawer.

This suggests the speaker has a specific drawer in mind, probably one both speaker and listener can identify from context. If you said i en skuff, it would mean in a drawer, with no specific drawer implied.

Yes, but here i is completely natural.

With legge, Norwegian commonly uses i when something is being put into an enclosed space:

• legge nøklene i skuffen = put the keys in the drawer
• legge boka i sekken = put the book in the bag

English often distinguishes in and into, but Norwegian usually just uses i for both location and movement into something. The verb often makes it clear whether it means in or into.

Here så means so that or so, expressing purpose:

• Jeg legger nøklene i skuffen så jeg ikke mister dem.
  = I put the keys in the drawer so that I don’t lose them.

This is not the same as så meaning then, so, or very in other contexts. Norwegian så has several uses, and this is one of the common ones.

In everyday Norwegian, using så for so that is very common and natural.

Yes. You could say:

• Jeg legger nøklene i skuffen for at jeg ikke skal miste dem.

But this version is a bit more formal or heavier in structure. In everyday speech, så jeg ikke mister dem is very natural and common.

There is also a grammar difference:

• så jeg ikke mister dem = straightforward, everyday purpose/result phrasing
• for at jeg ikke skal miste dem = more explicitly in order that I may not lose them

So så is usually the more conversational choice here.

Because in this kind of subordinate clause, Norwegian normally keeps the subject before ikke:

• så jeg ikke mister dem

This is standard subordinate-clause word order:

• conjunction: så
• subject: jeg
• negation: ikke
• verb: mister

So the pattern is:

• ... så + subject + ikke + verb

Compare:

• fordi jeg ikke vet = because I do not know
• når han ikke kommer = when he does not come

This is one of the big differences from main clauses in Norwegian, where the verb often comes earlier.

Because this is a subordinate clause introduced by så.

In Norwegian:

• In a main clause, the finite verb usually comes in second position.
• In a subordinate clause, ikke usually comes before the finite verb.

So:

• Main clause: Jeg mister dem ikke. = I do not lose them.
• Subordinate clause: så jeg ikke mister dem = so that I do not lose them

That placement of ikke is a very important pattern in Norwegian grammar.

Because dem is the object form of the pronoun, while de is the subject form.

• de = they
• dem = them

In jeg ikke mister dem, the keys are the object of mister:

• I lose them

So Norwegian uses dem.

In casual spoken Norwegian, many speakers use de and dem less strictly, but in standard written Norwegian, dem is correct here.

Both are in the present tense:

• legger = put / am putting
• mister = lose / am losing

Norwegian often uses the present tense in places where English might also use the present tense for habits, routines, or immediate actions.

So this sentence can mean something like:

• I put the keys in the drawer so I don’t lose them
• I’m putting the keys in the drawer so I don’t lose them

The exact English translation depends on context, but the Norwegian present tense works well for both.

It can be either, depending on context.

Norwegian present tense is flexible. This sentence could mean:

• a habit: I put the keys in the drawer so I don’t lose them
• a current action: I’m putting the keys in the drawer so I don’t lose them

Without more context, both are possible.

In practice, it is mainly understood as purpose here: the speaker puts the keys in the drawer in order not to lose them.

Because the second clause expresses intention, English so that is a good way to think about it.

A pure result reading is less likely here, because I put the keys in the drawer, so I don’t lose them naturally implies purpose anyway.

Because Norwegian often does not need a separate word corresponding exactly to English that in this structure.

English often says:

• so that I don’t lose them

Norwegian commonly just says:

• så jeg ikke mister dem

So the idea of so that is contained in så plus the following clause. This is normal and idiomatic Norwegian.

That depends on the written standard.

In Bokmål, the usual form is:

• mister

In Nynorsk, you may see:

• mister or mistar, depending on the verb pattern used

For a learner working with Bokmål, mister is the form to use here.

Then you would probably use ligger instead of legger:

• Nøklene ligger i skuffen så jeg ikke mister dem.

But that exact sentence sounds a little less natural, because if the keys are already lying there, the purpose clause can feel slightly odd.

A more natural way might be:

• Jeg lar nøklene ligge i skuffen så jeg ikke mister dem.
  = I leave the keys in the drawer so I don’t lose them.

This helps show the difference:

• legger = put them there
• lar ... ligge = leave them there
• ligger = they are there

Yes, it sounds natural and idiomatic.

A Norwegian speaker would understand it immediately, and the structure is very common in everyday language:

• action in the main clause
• purpose in the så clause

It is a good example of useful everyday Norwegian grammar:

• present tense
• definite nouns
• motion with legge
• subordinate clause word order
• object pronoun dem