Language/Norwegian-bokmal/Grammar/How-to-Use-Have

Norwegian Bokmål Grammar - How to Use "Have"

Hi Norwegian Bokmål learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will learn how to use the verb "to have" in Norwegian Bokmål grammar.

Once you've mastered this lesson, take a look at these related pages: Modal verbs & Negation.

Introduction

The verb "to have" is an important verb in any language, and Norwegian Bokmål is no exception. In Norwegian Bokmål, the verb "å ha" is used to express possession, as well as in some idiomatic expressions. Therefore, it's important to understand its usage and conjugation correctly.

If you're struggling with any aspect of Norwegian Bokmål grammar, don't forget you can always check out the Polylot Club website for some extra resources or even find native speakers and ask them any questions.

Possession

In Norwegian Bokmål, we use the verb "å ha" to indicate possession. In English, we use "have" in the same way, for example: "I have a car" or "She has a dog." Let's see how we can do the same in Norwegian Bokmål:

Norwegian Bokmål	Pronunciation	English
Jeg har	[jæi haar]	I have
Du har	[du haar]	You have (singular)
Han/hun/den/det har	[han/hun/dehn/deht haar]	He/she/it has
Vi har	[vi haar]	We have
Dere har	[deh-re haar]	You have (plural)
De har	[deh haar]	They have

Let's practice with some examples:

• A: Har du en penn? (Do you have a pen?)
• B: Ja, jeg har en penn. (Yes, I have a pen.)

• A: Har dere en bil? (Do you have a car?)
• B: Ja, vi har en bil. (Yes, we have a car.)

• A: Har Maria et hus? (Does Maria have a house?)
• B: Ja, hun har et hus. (Yes, she has a house.)

Idiomatic Expressions

In addition to expressing possession, "å ha" is also used in many useful idiomatic expressions in Norwegian Bokmål.

Here are some useful examples:

Norwegian Bokmål	Pronunciation	English
Å ha det travelt	[ooh hah deh trah-velt]	To be busy
Å ha rett	[ooh hah reht]	To be right
Å ha feil	[ooh hah fayl]	To be wrong

Let's put these in context with a dialogue:

• Person 1: Har du tid i dag? (Do you have time today?)
• Person 2: Nei, jeg har det veldig travelt i dag. (No, I'm very busy today.)

• Person 1: Jeg tror jeg har rett. (I think I'm right.)
• Person 2: Nei, dessverre du har feil. (No, unfortunately you're wrong.)

Negation

When negating "to have" in Norwegian Bokmål, we use "ikke" after the verb. Here are some examples:

• Jeg har ikke tid. (I don't have time.)
• Han har ikke lyst til å dra ut i kveld. (He doesn't feel like going out tonight.)

Conclusion

So, that was a brief overview of how to use the verb "to have" in Norwegian Bokmål. Remember, if you want to improve your Norwegian Bokmål Grammar, you can always use the Polyglot Club website. Find native speakers and ask them any questions!

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➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎

With this lesson finished, you may want to explore these additional pages: Gender and Definite Articles & Advanced sentence structure and syntax.

Other Lessons

• Conditional Mood
• Gender
• Questions
• Future Tense
• Nouns
• Negation
• Plurals
• Give your Opinion
• How to Use Be