r/norsk 3d ago

Søndagsspørsmål - Sunday Question Thread

1 Upvotes

This is a weekly post to ask any question that you may not have felt deserved its own post, or have been hesitating to ask for whatever reason. No question too small or silly!

Question Thread Collection


r/norsk Aug 14 '20

Some Norwegian resources and other helpful stuff

524 Upvotes

Probably missed a lot of resources, some due to laziness, and some due to limit in max allowed post size. Will edit as necessary.

Courses, grammar lessons, educational books, etc.

Duolingo (from A1 to A2/B1)

duolingo.com is free to use, supported by ads. Optional pay for no ads and for a few more features.

The Norwegian course is one of the more extensive ones available on Duolingo. The volunteer content creators have put a lot of work into it, and the creators are very responsive to fixing potential errors. The audio is computer generated.

You learn words and constructed sentences.

If you use the browser version you will get grammar tips, and can choose if you want to type the complete sentences or use selectable word choices. The phone app might or might not give access to the grammar tips.

A compiled pdf of the grammar tips for version 1 can be found on Google drive. (The Norwegian course is currently at version 4).

Memrise (from A1 to A2/B1)

memrise.com is free to use. Optional pay for more features.

A few courses are company made, while several others are user made. No easy way to correct errors found in the courses. Audio is usually spoken by humans.

You learn words and constructed phrases.

Learn Norwegian on the web (from A1 to A2/B1)

Free to use. Optional books you can buy. Made by the University in Trondheim, NTNU. Audio is spoken by humans.

A complete course starting with greetings and ending with basic communication.

FutureLearn (from A1 to A2/B1)

Free to use. Optional pay for more features. Audio and video spoken by humans. Made by the University of Oslo, UiO. Or by the University in Trondheim, NTNU.

Can be done at any time, but during their scheduled times (usually start of the fall and the spring semester) you will get help from human teachers.

CALST — Computer-Assisted Listening and Speaking Tutor

CALST is free to use. Made by the University in Trondheim, NTNU. Audio is spoken by humans.

Choose your native language, then choose your Norwegian dialect, then continue as guest, or optionally register an account.

Learn how to pronounce the Norwegian sounds and differentiate similar sounding words. Learn the sounds and tones/pitch.

Not all lessons work in all browsers. Chrome is recommended.

YouTube

Clozemaster (at B1/B2)

clozemaster.com is free to use. Optional pay for more features.

Not recommended for beginners.

Content is mostly user made. No easy way to correct errors in the material. Audio is computer generated.

You learn words (multiple choice).

Printed (on dead trees) learning material

  • På vei (A1/A2)
  • Stein på stein (B1)
  • Her på berget (B1/B2)
  • Ny i Norge (A1/A2)
  • The Mystery of Nils (A1/A2)
  • Mysteriet om Nils (B1/B2)

Grammar and stuff

Online grammar exercises (based on printed books)

/r/norsk FAQ and Wiki

Dictionaries

Bokmålsordboka/Nynorskordboka — Norwegian-Norwegian

The authoritative dictionary for Norwegian words and spelling.

Maintained by University of Bergen (UiB), and Språkrådet (The language council of Norway) that has government mandate to oversee the Norwegian language.

  • Also available as a free phone app.
  • Lists all acceptable inflection/conjugation/declension spelling forms of words, so some find it confusing.
  • Does not show pronunciation since Norwegian has no official way to pronounce words.
  • Does not list slang words, former spelling of modern words (except if it's in the etymologi) nor newly imported words.

Lexin — Norwegian-Norwegian-English-sort-of

Maintained by OsloMet.

  • Mainly intended for immigrants/refugees to Norway, so has some of the most common immigrant languages as option.
  • Lists the most common (often conservative) inflection patterns.
  • Computer generated voice with standard East-Norwegian dialect.
  • Choose any language other than bokmål or nynorsk and it usually shows English too.

Det norske akademis ordbok — Norwegian-Norwegian

Maintained by Det norske akademi for språk og kultur, a private organisation promoting riksmål, which is NOT allowed officially.

  • Lists slang words and archaic spelling variants of words.
  • Uses a very conservative spelling and inflection variant.
  • Lists a Norwegianised pronunciation guide for words, using upper class/Western-Oslo dialect.

Ordnett — Norwegian-English/English-Norwegian

Maintained by a book publisher.

  • Also available as a phone app.
  • Costs $$$ money $$$. Possibly a lot of money.
  • Has dictionaries for a several languages commonly learned by Norwegians, for example English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Polish, Russian, Chinese, Arabic, Swedish.

Online communities

Facebook

Discord

Discord is a web-browser/phone/windows/mac/etc-app that allows both text, voice and video chat. Most of the resources in this post were first posted here.

If you are new to Discord its user interface might be a bit confusing in the beginning, since there are many servers/communities and many topics on each server.

If you're new to Discord and you try it, using a web-browser until you get familiar and see if this is something you enjoy or not is recommended.

If you use a phone you will need to swipe left and right, long-press and minimise/expand categories and stuff much more than on a bigger computer screen, which probably adds complexity to the initial confusion of a using an unfamiliar app.

Some Norwegian servers:

Newspapers

Media

Podcasts

Various books

Various material for use by Norwegian schools

Various (children's) series

NRK TV

Children's stuff with subtitles

Brødrene Dahl

Youth stuff

Other stuff without subtitles

Grown up stuff

For those with a VPN (or living in Norway)

For those living in Norway

Visit your local library in person and check out their web pages. It gives you free access to lots of books, magazines, films and stuff.

Most also have additional digital stuff you get free access to, like e-books, films, dictionaries, all kind of magazines and newspapers.

Some even give you free access to some of the paid Norwegian languages courses listed above.


r/norsk 3h ago

Voksenkjeft

14 Upvotes

Har begrepet «voksenkjeft» en god engelsk ekvivalent?

Does the Norwegian term «voksenkjeft» (composed of the words for adult + reprimand/yelling) have an English equivalent?

E: spelling


r/norsk 4h ago

Resource(s) ← looking for Anbefalinger for YouTube eller podcaster

2 Upvotes

Hi hi,

jeg har et lite spørsmål for dere. Jeg leter etter podcaster eller kanaler på YouTube som jeg kan se for å forbedre min norsk forståelse.

Jeg elsker å se på videospill, reaksjonsvideoer og videoessays om forskjellige temaer. Altså vil jeg spør om dere har noen anbefalinger som passer denne profilen?

Tusen takk i forveien!


r/norsk 2d ago

I'm starting to doubt that Duolingo can help me make any real progress.

Post image
405 Upvotes

I sat staring at the screen for five minutes. The thing is, I don't know of any other ways to learn Norwegian online starting from Italian.


r/norsk 1d ago

I'm feeling like a moron in my B1 course

22 Upvotes

I made a post some days ago reviewing SpeakNorsk so far, to which I gave it a so-so rating. Now nearing the halfway point of the B1 course I'm just feeling like a moron or that I haven't actually been learning/retaining much. It's becoming more frustrating than anything else.

Like, yeah, I know a lot more than where I was at with my 32 Duolingo score before coming into this and it's certainly helped, but the course seems to be making an assumption that I should be able to take in word-for-word EVERYTHING in the learning modules and textbooks without any English equivalent translations to anything.

I can name a lot of examples of this, but in my most recent exercise, for example, the word "enda" was used without EVER having learned what that actually means.

The word has a separate module that comes up next with an explanation.

Like, why use that in the exercise if they know none of us know its meaning?

Repeated instances of this just makes it feel like I'm set up to fail. Oftentimes in these exercises too, it's become a rinse and repeat process of getting the quizzes wrong at a less than 50% rate, then slowly going back and just trial-and-error processing the whole thing until you get to 100%, and there isn't adequate explanation for WHY you're wrong.

I also try to put my learning into practice by reading subtitles of news videos, headlines, movies, but if it weren't for the subtitles I would be completely lost. Even with them I can still only understand about 50% of what is being told to me.

Additionally I've tried to get immersed in having my friends Snapchat me using only Norwegian but more often than not I can't make out much of what's being said, either, except picking up on a few words or phrases here and there. Like, I can get a general idea of what they say, but not word for word what's being explicitly told to me. And then when I try to respond verbally, oh boy.....

Idk. I guess maybe this isn't the place to be venting this kind of thing, but where I'm at in my learning experience right now just makes me feel like I'm banging my head against a wall and I feel stupid for getting so much wrong, especially after four years of Duolingo and this course. I need reassurances and/or tips.


r/norsk 1d ago

How did you pass the B1 Norskprøve? Share your best tips & strategies!

8 Upvotes

Hey guys,

I’m currently studying Norwegian and aiming to get through the B1 Norskprøve, but I feel like I've hit that mid-level plateau where standard textbook study starts feeling a bit slow.

For anyone here who has passed B1 (or higher), how did you actually do it?

I’d really love to hear what worked best for you in real life, especially for:

  • Speaking/Muntlig: How did you get past the fear of making mistakes in daily conversations?
  • Listening/Lytting: Any specific podcasts, YouTube channels, or TV shows that helped train your ear without being too overwhelming?
  • Exam prep: Did you focus mostly on sample tests, or just overall immersion?

Any smart tips, resource recommendations, or even things you wish you did differently would be awesome.

Tusen takk!


r/norsk 1d ago

Resource(s) ← looking for How to keep up your norwegian without living in norway?

29 Upvotes

There's hardly any content in Norwegian online that isn't for kids.
What do people who don't live in Norway and have a B2 level do to keep their skills from slipping?


r/norsk 2d ago

"Jeg vet meg"

14 Upvotes

Snublet over denne arkaiske formuleringen, men hva betyr den egentlig? Er det en poetisk måte å skrive "jeg vet om"?


r/norsk 1d ago

Best way to approach the learning

0 Upvotes

Hello! I am a newbie and know a lot of words from duolingo. Of course its not enough because I can only read basic sentences and dont understand if they are spoken to me. I have heard watching children's movies help a lot. I am also thinking of tuning in the radio. Is this the correct approach? Considering I wont understand whats going on- should I just continue anyway? Thank you for your kind responses :)


r/norsk 2d ago

What’s a good way to say this sentence?

5 Upvotes

“I like to walk up hills for exercise”


r/norsk 2d ago

Can someone help me translate?

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

0 Upvotes

So I am listening to this podcast, and there is this one part after 'Han har tipper du må høre på' till 'jævlig fint' that I just cannot figure out what he is saying. Can someone help me translate this? Thanks in advance


r/norsk 3d ago

Which article to use for feminine nouns

7 Upvotes

Hallo! I have recently begun learning Norwegian again, and like so many others I see, I have run into the issue of whether or not to learn/use the feminine forms of nouns. After doing some digging throughout Reddit, I will definitely learn the feminine forms, as it does seem like they are widely used throughout the country besides Bergen.

Another issue that I have seen though is that there seems to be at least a handful of people who use the feminine declensions of the noun, however use the masculine article, and have gone so far to say that it would sound slightly strange to not use the masculine article. So for instance, they would say:

en ku, kua (if I understand correctly)

Is this fairly standard, or is it more typical to keep the feminine article? I know there are different dialects, so it might just be a highly regional difference, but thank you to anyone who can help out!


r/norsk 2d ago

Curiosity and Duolingo :)

0 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I'm a curious person who loves history and cultures, and my native language is Spanish (🇦🇷). One day I thought, "This country is so beautiful! Why don't we learn its language?" Now I'm struggling with pronunciation and trying to understand the grammar, all with free videos and Duolingo, haha 😅💔

I think I'm doing alright! (I hope so! 😭) I can already read a few sentences and introduce myself... Any advice or suggestions about languages for this poor soul? Thanks so much for reading! My friends! 🤗✨


r/norsk 5d ago

Difference between «steg» and «skritt»

11 Upvotes

I've seen both translated into «step», but I don't understand in which context you'd use one or the other. Are they interchangeable?

Thank you!!


r/norsk 5d ago

Bokmål Translation Help

12 Upvotes

Hei alle sammen! I tried google translating the following from English and would like confirmation if it sounds natural? They are wedding vows in case it helps 🫣

English: *I promise to learn more Norwegian so I can communicate with you, our family and friends better. I promise to always sit at the table with you — whether it’s for Grandiosa or ribbe*

Norsk: *Jeg lover å lære mer norsk slik at jeg kan kommunisere bedre med deg, familien vår og vennene våre. Jeg lover å alltid sitte ved bordet med deg, enten det er for Grandiosa eller ribbe*

Tusen takk!


r/norsk 5d ago

What app do you recommend learning Norwegian?

0 Upvotes

r/norsk 6d ago

How do you say “I’m giving you a free trial” in Norwegian? The context is in giving a free piano lesson.

3 Upvotes

r/norsk 6d ago

Does anyone know of any affordable language schools or online tutoring?

10 Upvotes

I'm a native english speaker in the US. I really want to learn norwegian but I'm having a hard time locking in and learning on my own. I live a few hours away from a university that offers norwegian but the next class isn't until Fall 2027. I would love to go to Norway and take part in an immersion program but for now, the more realistic option for me is online tutoring. Does anyone know of any good online university classes/tutoring options or in-person immersion programs I can look into for the future?


r/norsk 7d ago

Bokmål Learning Norwegian as a Norwegian American

63 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I am half Norwegian on my mothers side. She moved to the USA when she married my American father. Growing up she taught us, (my sister and I), some Norwegian and we spent summers with my grandmother who couldn’t speak English. Unfortunately, we never became fluent.

For the past three years on and off, I’ve been using Duolingo to try to learn more. I’ve noticed that I have improved across the board, but still struggle with speaking and listening to the point that I don’t feel confident holding long conversations. I was very consistent for about a year and a half with the app, but didn’t make as much progress as I wished.

Do you have any tips for learning to speak and listen better, or any overall advice? Also, is there a better app than Duolingo? (I don’t like some of the changes they’ve made to their app and find it very annoying to practice now).

I should also mention that I’ve considered immigrating to Norway for political, economic, and many other reasons, but would like to brush up on the language first.

Tusen takk!


r/norsk 6d ago

B2 at the end of november - is it possible?

0 Upvotes

sorry for my bad english, it isn't exactly my first language.

i'm 20 years old, have EU citizenship, and want to apply to university by (i believe?) april 15th 2027, as i'm pretty sure that is the application deadline for the program i want to do. this is a bachelors at a norwegian university, and therefore i must get a norwegian language certificate by then. i plan to take the winter norskprøve, the one with a test period between the 30th of november and 4th of december.

i'm not a B2 yet is the thing, nor am i particularly confident in my abilities to speak norwegian. i'm a very shy, introverted person and generally struggle with public speaking. i've been trying to build confidence by speaking to my norwegian teacher as much as possible during lessons, but i'm very aware that a test environment is going to put a lot of pressure on me. according to her, i would pass B1, but B2 would require a lot of dedication and intensive studying for at least an hour a day. i already speaking at least 30 minutes on flashcards - reaching an hour isn't particularly hard for me, and therefore i've decided to do at least 2. i haven't been the most consistent, in all honesty, but for the sake of the future i want, i know i have to work on it.

i know you can also take the norskprøve in the spring, but i'm very worried about it because of how close getting your results could be to the application deadline, and therefore i've decided to put this effort in now. if i end up not succeeding, i will have put in the effort anyways, and hopefully enough and with enough luck that i'd still be able to obtain my certificate in the spring and be able to apply for 2027.

do i have the correct facts here? have i come to reasonable conclusions based upon them? is this plan solid? do you think i will generally struggle way more than is expected when i move based on it? i know moving is incredibly difficult and i will have to work 10x harder than my peers from experience - but do you think i'm setting myself up for an impossible task?

oh, and a bonus question: i've been looking up exam centers that take in foreign residents, and in all honesty it scares me a little to travel to them - ive been in norway before, but only really trondheim and oslo, plus i don't know anyone who lives in the areas you can take the exam in. is it reasonable to ask the trondheim exam center if they would be willing to administer the exam to me, or is such a thing unacceptable to ask?

i don't want to live in delusion about my norwegian abilities, so you have every right in the world to roast me if this is impossible or extremely difficult and/or you think this plan is stupid. in addition, if there's anyone who would be willing to talk one-on-one about their experiences taking the norskprøve, especially for university, i would love to do so. this also goes for immigration to norway, especially as an EU citizen. any study advice or ideas for improving my norwegian are also heavily encouraged. thank you for your time!


r/norsk 7d ago

What is the status of the feminine gender in academic Norwegian?

20 Upvotes

Hello everyone,

I was wondering whether university students (asking for the ones in Bergen, specifically) use the feminine gender in an academic context.

Thank you!


r/norsk 7d ago

Norwegian is supposedly the easiest tlamguage for English speakers?

67 Upvotes

I speak fluently in English, i speak spanish, can introduce myself in French, German, and norwegian. And out of all of the norwegian to me is the hardest. maybe not so the grammar but definitely the pronunciation.

I love the norwegian culture and the language is beautiful but it seems so difficult for English speakers although its labeled at the number one easiest.


r/norsk 7d ago

litt hjelp om gjendiktning

4 Upvotes

Kjære venner, jeg prøver å gjendikte følgende dikt av Torgeir Rebollede Pedersen. Det er to uttrykk jeg ikke helt forstår: «om barn vil bli snødd for» og «om skjørbein blir strødd for». Jeg har slått opp i mange ordbøker, men har ikke helt klart å finne ut av det. Jeg ville sette stor pris på om dere kunne hjelpe meg litt. Orhan Tekelioglu

Diktet er som følgende:

Å leve for det jeg vet

Å falle for det jeg tror på

Å leve for det jeg vet

Og for det jeg får vite

Hvor jeg skal elske

Hvem jeg skal elske

Og hva vi skal elske om

Om verden reiser seg før den faller?

Og om den reiser seg igjen?

Om barn vil bli snødd for

Om skjørbein blir strødd for

Å leve for det jeg vet

Å falle for det jeg tror på

Så lenge skjørbein blir strødd for

Så lenge barn vil bli snødd for


r/norsk 8d ago

Is lønn a countable or uncountable noun?

9 Upvotes

Can you for example say "ei lønn", "lønner" or "to lønner"?

Also, is there a resource where you can look up any word and see if it is countable or uncountable? I have wondered many times but I can never find information on any individual word.

Thanks in advance!