Past Tense
Learn to form Norwegian past tenses: the simple past (preteritum) and the present perfect (har + past participle). Norwegian verbs fall into groups with different past tense patterns.
1Introduction to Norwegian Past Tenses
Norwegian has two main past tenses: preteritum (simple past) for completed actions, and presens perfektum (present perfect with "har" + past participle) for actions with relevance to the present. Unlike present tense, past tenses vary based on verb groups. The good news: like present tense, all subjects use the same form - no conjugation by person!
Examples
Jeg spiste middag i går.
I ate dinner yesterday.
Preteritum - completed past action
Jeg har spist middag.
I have eaten dinner.
Presens perfektum - connection to now
Hun bodde i Oslo.
She lived in Oslo.
Preteritum for description of past
Vi har bodd her i fem år.
We have lived here for five years.
Perfektum for ongoing relevance
2Weak Verbs Group 1 (-et)
Group 1 verbs add -et for both preteritum and past participle. These are usually verbs with stems ending in two consonants, or stressed short vowels. This is the largest verb group. Pattern: infinitive → preteritum (-et) → past participle (-et). Example: å jobbe → jobbet → jobbet.
Examples
Jeg jobbet hele dagen.
I worked all day.
å jobbe → jobbet (preteritum)
Han har snakket med sjefen.
He has talked to the boss.
å snakke → snakket (participle)
Vi ventet lenge.
We waited a long time.
å vente → ventet
De har kastet ballen.
They have thrown the ball.
å kaste → kastet
3Weak Verbs Group 2 (-te/-t)
Group 2 verbs add -te for preteritum and -t for past participle. These are verbs with stems ending in single consonant (except -v) or diphthong. They often have a stressed long vowel. Pattern: å lese → leste → lest. å kjøpe → kjøpte → kjøpt.
Examples
Jeg leste boka i går.
I read the book yesterday.
å lese → leste (preteritum)
Hun har kjøpt ny bil.
She has bought a new car.
å kjøpe → kjøpt (participle)
Vi reiste til Sverige.
We traveled to Sweden.
å reise → reiste
Han har lært norsk.
He has learned Norwegian.
å lære → lært
4Strong Verbs (Vowel Change)
Strong verbs change their stem vowel in the past tenses, similar to English (sing-sang-sung). There's no ending added in preteritum; the past participle ends in -et or -t. These must be memorized. Common patterns: i-a-u (skrive-skrev-skrevet), i-ei-e (bli-ble-blitt).
Examples
Jeg skrev et brev.
I wrote a letter.
å skrive → skrev (vowel change i→e)
Han har skrevet til meg.
He has written to me.
å skrive → skrevet (participle)
Hun drakk kaffe.
She drank coffee.
å drikke → drakk
Vi har kommet hjem.
We have come home.
å komme → kom → kommet
5Irregular Verbs 'være' and 'ha'
The most important irregular verbs are "å være" (to be) and "å ha" (to have). Their forms must be memorized as they don't follow any pattern. Å være: er → var → vært. Å ha: har → hadde → hatt. These are used constantly in Norwegian.
Examples
Jeg var syk i går.
I was sick yesterday.
å være: er → var (preteritum)
Det har vært fint vær.
The weather has been nice.
å være: har vært (perfektum)
Vi hadde det gøy.
We had fun.
å ha: har → hadde (preteritum)
Jeg har hatt en lang dag.
I have had a long day.
Ã¥ ha: har hatt (perfektum)