Temporal Expressions in Norwegian

In Brief

Norwegian uses for ... siden for a point measured back from now (for to år siden, “two years ago”), om for a point measured forward (om to timer, “in two hours”), and i for the duration of an activity (i to timer, “for two hours”). Everyday expressions such as i går, i dag, and i morgen normally have no extra preposition. When a time expression begins a main clause, the verb still comes second: I morgen kommer hun.

Overview

A temporal expression tells you when something happens, how long it lasts, or how far it is from the present. Norwegian calls these expressions tidsuttrykk. They range from single adverbs (words that add information such as time), such as nå “now” and snart “soon,” to phrases such as for tre dager siden “three days ago.”

This A2 topic builds on basic numbers, dates, weekdays, and clock time. The main challenge for an English-speaking learner is not the number itself but the small word around it. English in can correspond to Norwegian om for future time, while English for can correspond to i for duration. The Norwegian pattern for ... siden also surrounds the amount of time rather than placing one word after it.

A second important habit is word order. Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb (the verb form carrying tense, such as kommer or reiste) occupies the second position. A time phrase can fill the first position, but the subject then follows the verb: I går reiste jeg hjem.

How It Works

Fixed expressions for today and nearby days

Several very common expressions begin with i. Learn them as complete units rather than trying to translate each word separately.

Norwegian	English	Typical reference
i går	yesterday	the day before today
i dag	today	the current day
i morgen	tomorrow	the day after today
i forgårs	the day before yesterday	two days ago
i overmorgen	the day after tomorrow	two days from now
i morges	this morning	normally a morning that has ended
i kveld	this evening / tonight	the coming or current evening
i natt	tonight / last night	interpreted from tense and context

Do not add another preposition: i går, not på i går. Notice that morgen in i morgen means “tomorrow,” whereas om morgenen means “in the morning” as a repeated or general time.

For ... siden: how long ago

Use for + amount of time + siden when an event occurred a measured distance before now.

Pattern: subject + past-tense verb + for + amount + siden

• Jeg reiste for to år siden. — I traveled two years ago.
• De flyttet hit for en måned siden. — They moved here a month ago.

The whole phrase points to a past time; it does not describe how long the event lasted. Consequently, it normally accompanies a past form. Norwegian places for before the amount and siden after it. English needs only “ago” after the amount, so both ends of the Norwegian frame need deliberate practice.

Om: a future point

Use om + amount of time to say that something will happen after that amount has passed.

Pattern: om + amount = in / after that amount from now

• Bussen går om ti minutter. — The bus leaves in ten minutes.
• Vi møtes om en uke. — We will meet in a week.
• Hun kommer om litt. — She is coming in a moment.

Norwegian often uses the present tense for a scheduled or expected future event. The future meaning comes from the time expression, so kommer om litt is entirely natural without a separate future auxiliary.

Do not confuse this om with its other common meanings, including “about,” “whether,” and “if.” Context makes the temporal meaning clear when om is followed by an amount of time.

I: how long an activity lasts

Use i + amount of time to present a period during which an activity continues or continued.

• Vi har ventet i tre timer. — We have been waiting for three hours.
• Hun jobbet der i fem år. — She worked there for five years.
• Jeg bor her i to måneder. — I am living here for two months.

The tense tells you how that period relates to the present. With a past verb, the period is usually finished: Jeg bodde der i et år means “I lived there for a year.” With the present perfect (a form such as har ventet, linking a past beginning to now), it commonly describes a situation that is still continuing: Vi har ventet i tre timer.

A present-tense sentence such as Jeg bor her i to måneder is most natural when the two-month stay is understood as a limited current arrangement. If you mean that you have already lived here for two months and still do, say Jeg har bodd her i to måneder.

På: time needed, or time without an event

A useful contrast is på + amount of time. In an affirmative sentence, it often gives the time needed to complete something:

• Hun leste boka på to dager. — She read the book in two days.
• Jeg kan gjøre det på en time. — I can do it in an hour.

With a negative verb, på often means “for” or “in” when nothing has happened throughout a period:

• Jeg har ikke sett ham på tre uker. — I have not seen him for three weeks.
• Hun har ikke vært her på lenge. — She has not been here for a long time.

Compare Han skrev i to timer (“He wrote for two hours,” activity duration) with Han skrev rapporten på to timer (“He wrote the report in two hours,” completion time).

Where the time expression goes

A time phrase commonly appears after the verb and its objects, or at the start for framing or emphasis:

• Jeg møtte henne i går.
• I går møtte jeg henne.

When it comes first, treat the complete phrase as position one. The finite verb must immediately follow it, and the subject comes next.

Position 1	Verb	Subject	Rest
I morgen	kommer	hun	hjem.
For to år siden	flyttet	vi	til Bergen.
Om en time	begynner	møtet	—

In a subordinate clause (a clause embedded after words such as fordi “because”), the ordinary subordinate order applies: fordi hun kommer i morgen. The V2 inversion described above belongs to main clauses.

A beginner decision guide

Meaning you want	Norwegian pattern	Example
a named nearby day	fixed expression	i går, i morgen
a point before now	for + amount + siden	for tre dager siden
a point after now	om + amount	om tre dager
duration of an activity	i + amount	i tre dager
time needed to finish	på + amount	på tre dager

Examples in Context

Norwegian	English	Note
Jeg reiste for to år siden.	I traveled two years ago.	A past point with for ... siden
Vi har ventet i tre timer.	We have been waiting for three hours.	Duration continuing until now
Hun kommer om litt.	She is coming in a moment.	Near future
Jeg bor her i to måneder.	I am living here for two months.	A limited current arrangement
I går kjøpte jeg en ny sykkel.	Yesterday I bought a new bicycle.	Initial time phrase triggers V2 order
De skal dra i morgen tidlig.	They are leaving tomorrow morning.	i morgen tidlig is a common combination
Vi møttes i forgårs.	We met the day before yesterday.	Fixed nearby-day expression
Toget går om tjue minutter.	The train leaves in twenty minutes.	Present tense with future meaning
Hun studerte norsk i seks måneder.	She studied Norwegian for six months.	Finished duration in the past
Han har jobbet her i mange år.	He has worked here for many years.	Situation continuing into the present
Jeg gjorde ferdig oppgaven på en time.	I finished the assignment in an hour.	Time required for completion
Vi har ikke reist på to år.	We have not traveled for two years.	Negative period with på
Om en uke begynner ferien.	The vacation begins in a week.	The verb follows the initial phrase
Jeg trener om morgenen.	I exercise in the morning.	Habitual time, unlike i morgen
Det regnet i hele natt.	It rained all night.	Duration across the night

Common Mistakes

Using i for a future countdown

• Wrong: Bussen kommer i ti minutter.
• Right: Bussen kommer om ti minutter.
• Why: Om ti minutter locates the arrival ten minutes from now. I ti minutter describes an activity lasting ten minutes.

Translating “ago” with only siden

• Wrong: Jeg så henne to dager siden.
• Right: Jeg så henne for to dager siden.
• Why: Measured “ago” normally uses the full frame for + amount + siden.

Keeping English subject order after an initial time phrase

• Wrong: I morgen jeg jobber hjemme.
• Right: I morgen jobber jeg hjemme.
• Why: In a Norwegian main clause, the finite verb takes the second position. The time phrase already occupies the first.

Confusing duration with completion time

• Wrong: Jeg leste ferdig boka i to dager.
• Right: Jeg leste ferdig boka på to dager.
• Why: På to dager gives the time needed to complete the book. Use i to dager when you mean only that the reading activity lasted for two days.

Using the simple present for an elapsed period without context

• Less natural: Jeg bor her i to måneder. (if you mean “I have lived here for two months so far”)
• Right: Jeg har bodd her i to måneder.
• Why: Norwegian normally uses the present perfect for a state that began in the past and continues now. The simple present works when a temporary two-month arrangement is understood.

Mixing up i morgen and om morgenen

• Wrong: Jeg trener i morgen. (if you mean every morning)
• Right: Jeg trener om morgenen.
• Why: I morgen means “tomorrow.” Om morgenen describes mornings generally or habitually.

Usage Notes

Context decides what i natt means

English distinguishes “last night” and “tonight,” but Norwegian often uses i natt for the night connected with the situation. Tense and context do the work: Jeg sov dårlig i natt refers to last night, while Jeg skal jobbe i natt refers to tonight. If clarity matters, a speaker can add more context.

Calendar periods use several prepositions

Norwegian prepositions with calendar words are partly idiomatic. I sommer can mean “this summer” or, with a past context, “last summer”; til sommeren points toward the coming summer. Repeated times commonly use om: om sommeren “in summer,” om natta/natten “at night.” Learn these as recurring patterns rather than extending one universal rule from English “in.”

Bokmål variation

Both natta and natten are accepted Bokmål forms, as are morgenen and more conversational variants in suitable contexts. The temporal grammar does not change. Spoken Norwegian also varies by dialect, so you may hear forms different from a textbook while still recognizing om, i, and for ... siden.

Time expressions can set the scene

Putting the time first does more than change word order. It makes time the frame for what follows: I går jobbet jeg hjemme naturally contrasts yesterday with another day. A final time phrase, Jeg jobbet hjemme i går, is often more neutral. Both are correct.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master every distinction at A2, but the following patterns explain forms you will meet later.

Siden can introduce a starting point

On its own, siden can mean “since” and introduce the point when a continuing situation began:

• Jeg har bodd her siden 2022. — I have lived here since 2022.
• Vi har kjent hverandre siden vi var barn. — We have known each other since we were children.

This differs from the frame for to år siden, which identifies a past point: “two years ago.” Compare:

• Hun flyttet hit for to år siden. — She moved here two years ago.
• Hun har bodd her siden da. — She has lived here since then.

I løpet av marks a window

I løpet av means “during,” “over the course of,” or sometimes “within.” It presents a period as the window in which something happens:

• Jeg skal svare i løpet av dagen. — I will reply during the day / by the end of the day.
• Mye har skjedd i løpet av året. — A lot has happened over the course of the year.

The exact English translation depends on whether the sentence emphasizes activity within the period or completion before it ends.

Fra ... til and innen

Use fra ... til ... for explicit boundaries: Kontoret er åpent fra ni til fire (“The office is open from nine to four”). Innen gives a deadline meaning “by” or “no later than”: Send søknaden innen fredag (“Send the application by Friday”). A deadline is not the same as om: om fredag is not the normal way to say “by Friday.”

Duration can change with aspectual meaning

Norwegian has no single verb form matching every English contrast between “did,” “was doing,” and “has been doing.” The tense, the verb’s meaning, and expressions such as i to timer or på to timer work together. The contrast between open activity and completed result is especially useful:

• Hun skrev i to timer. — She wrote for two hours; completion is not stated.
• Hun skrev brevet på to timer. — She wrote the letter in two hours; the result was completed.

Practice Tips

1. Build three-way sets. Choose one amount and make a past point, a future point, and a duration: for tre dager siden, om tre dager, i tre dager. This trains meaning and preposition together.
2. Move the time phrase. Rewrite Jeg jobber hjemme i morgen as I morgen jobber jeg hjemme. Say both aloud and check that the verb remains second in the second version.
3. Keep a short time diary. Each day write one sentence with i går, one with i dag, and one with i morgen. Once that feels easy, add one sentence contrasting i and på.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Numbers and Time — provides the numbers, clock times, weekdays, months, and seasons used inside these expressions.