Bussen stanser ved holdeplassen.

Because bussen is the definite form of en buss — the bus.

In Norwegian, the definite article is usually added to the end of the noun:

• en buss = a bus
• bussen = the bus

This is very common in Norwegian and often feels unusual to English speakers at first, because English uses a separate word (the) instead.

For the same reason: Norwegian usually marks definiteness by adding an ending to the noun.

• en holdeplass = a bus stop / a stop
• holdeplassen = the bus stop

So holdeplassen already means the bus stop.

You can sometimes see a separate definite word like den, but that usually happens when there is an adjective:

• holdeplassen = the bus stop
• den store holdeplassen = the big bus stop

Stanser is the present tense of å stanse, which means to stop.

So:

• å stanse = to stop
• stanser = stops / is stopping

In this sentence, it describes what the bus does at the bus stop.

They are very close in meaning, and in many situations they can both mean stops.

• Bussen stanser ved holdeplassen.
• Bussen stopper ved holdeplassen.

Both are understandable and natural.

A learner should know that å stoppe is often more common in everyday speech, while å stanse can sound a bit more formal or written, depending on context. But both are standard Norwegian.

Because stanser is in the present tense.

For many Norwegian verbs, the present tense is formed with -er:

• å stanse → stanser
• å stoppe → stopper
• å vente → venter

Unlike English, Norwegian does not add a special ending just for he/she/it. The same present-tense form is used for all subjects:

• jeg stanser
• du stanser
• bussen stanser
• vi stanser

Here, ved means something like at, by, or near.

So ved holdeplassen means at the bus stop or by the bus stop.

It does not literally mean the bus is physically touching the stop; it means the stopping happens at that location.

This is mainly about Norwegian preposition usage.

With places like a stop or a location beside something, ved is very natural for meaning at/by that place:

• ved holdeplassen = at the bus stop

Using på would usually suggest on something, or in some contexts at certain places, but ved holdeplassen is the more natural choice here for the physical location where the bus stops.

Prepositions often do not match English one-for-one, so this is something learners usually just have to get used to through exposure.

It is a compound noun, which is very common in Norwegian.

It comes from:

• holdeplass = stop / stopping place
• holdeplassen = the stop

And holdeplass itself can be understood as:

• holde = to hold / to stop
• plass = place

So the idea is literally something like stopping place.

Norwegian makes compounds very freely, much like German, and unlike English, they are usually written as one word.

The sentence has the basic Norwegian order:

Subject + Verb + Prepositional phrase

• Bussen = subject
• stanser = verb
• ved holdeplassen = place phrase

So:

• Bussen stanser ved holdeplassen.

This is the normal order for a simple statement.

Yes. You could say:

• Ved holdeplassen stanser bussen.

This is also grammatical, but Norwegian has an important rule: the finite verb usually comes in the second position in main clauses.

So if you move Ved holdeplassen to the front, the verb stanser must still come before the subject bussen.

That is why you get:

• Ved holdeplassen stanser bussen.

not

• Ved holdeplassen bussen stanser.

It can depend on context.

Norwegian present tense often covers both:

• The bus stops at the bus stop
• The bus is stopping at the bus stop

Without more context, English might choose either translation. Norwegian often uses the simple present where English might prefer the present progressive.

So stanser does not necessarily force only one English tense.

Both nouns here are normally common gender nouns in Bokmål, using en:

• en buss → bussen
• en holdeplass → holdeplassen

For a learner, the important pattern is:

• en noun → definite singular usually ends in -en

That is exactly what you see in both words in this sentence.

A rough guide is:

• Bussen ≈ BUS-sen
• stanser ≈ STAHN-ser
• ved ≈ vehd
• holdeplassen ≈ HOL-deh-plas-sen

A few useful notes:

• u in buss is not like English you; it is closer to the vowel in put for many learners.
• d in ved is clearly pronounced.
• In holdeplassen, the compound stress is mainly on the first part: HOL-.

Pronunciation varies somewhat by region, but this will get you close.