Vi må prioritere behovet og undersøke grunnlaget.

We must prioritize the need and investigate the basis.

Breakdown of Vi må prioritere behovet og undersøke grunnlaget.

• vi: we
• og: and
• må: must
• behovet: the need

Questions & Answers about Vi må prioritere behovet og undersøke grunnlaget.

Why does the sentence use må?

Må is a modal verb meaning must, have to, or sometimes need to, depending on context.

In Vi må prioritere behovet og undersøke grunnlaget, it shows necessity or obligation:

• Vi må = we must / we have to

A useful thing to know is that Norwegian modal verbs do not change for different subjects:

• jeg må
• du må
• vi må

So må stays the same no matter who is doing the action.

Why are prioritere and undersøke written without å?

Because after a modal verb like må, Norwegian normally uses the bare infinitive.

So:

• å prioritere = to prioritize
• å undersøke = to investigate / examine

But after må, you say:

• må prioritere
• må undersøke

This is similar to English:

• we must prioritize
• not we must to prioritize

Common Norwegian modal verbs that behave this way include:

• kan
• vil
• skal
• må
• bør

Why do behovet and grunnlaget end in -et?