Linking words
To vary the language there are alternatives like besides (dessuten/dessutan) and in addition (i tillegg): She is a good car mechanic. Besides, she is a very nice person. but: It was pouring down, but we managed to finish our work. However is a good alternative for but: His friend, however, didn’t like it at all. We can also use expressions like yet, still, nevertheless (likevel) to vary our language: It was pouring down, still/nevertheless we managed to finish our work. or: Would you like to do it now or would you rather wait?
The following expressions are often used: ither – or (enten – eller / anten – eller), whether – or (enten – eller / anten – eller), neither – nor (verken – eller): He must either walk or use his bike. Whether you walk or use your bike is the same to me. so: It was a long way to go, so we had to start off quite early. Therefore and consequently are words that could be used as alternatives. There are conjunctions which introduce subordinate clauses (leddsetninger/leddsetningar).
Here are some of the most common ones: Time clauses: when, while (mens), after, before, until/till, since, as soon as, as long as: While e were having breakfast, the sun broke through. Concessive clauses (innr?mmelse/ vedg?ing): though/although/even though/even if (selv om / sJ?lv 0m), whatever (hva – enn / kva – enn), no matter who/what/when/how (uansett hvem, hva, n?r, hvordan / uansett kven, kva, n?r, korleis): We tried once more, even though we knew it wouldn’t work. Whatever you do, please dont leave me here!
Comparative clauses (sammenlignende/samanliknande): than (enn), as – as: He did much better than me, even though I did as well as I could. Conditional clauses (betingelse/vilk?r): if, unless (med mindre), provided (that) (forutsatt at / f?resett at), as long as: I’ll go if you go! This won’t work unless you get more help. Causal clauses (?rsak): because, since, as: He wouldn’t listen to me, because he was so angry. Since/As he was so angry, he wouldn’t listen to me. Using Relative Pronouns Relative pronouns (who, which, that) are used to combine sentences: I have two good friends.
They will come to me tomorrow. – I have two good friends, who will come to me tomorrow. Jogging is a nice sport. Everybody can do this sport. – Jogging is a nice sport, which everybody can do. Combining sentences with relative pronouns is more common in written English than in spoken English. Using Ing-torms The ing-form of the verb can be used to make the language more varied and often better. Look at the two sentences She was walking through the main street and She met two good friends.
They can be combined by using a conjunction: While she was walking through the main street, she met two good friends. But you can also use an ng-form and shorten the sentence: Walking through the main street, she met two good friends. NB! When you use an ing-form like this, the subject of the two parts must be the same. Another example: Standing in front of me, she could see the stage much better. An ing-form can be used to replace a defining (n?dvendig) relative clause: Did you talk to the person who passed you? – Did you talk to the person passing you?
Using Infinitive Constructions Infinitive constructions can be used to make sentences “flow” better. Look at the ollowing examples where that, when, where, how, what sentences are replaced by infinitive constructions: I was glad that I could leave – I was glad to leave. She was sorry when she heard about the accident – She was sorry to hear about the accident. We found out where we could leave our luggage – We found out where to leave our luggage. He knew how he would get to the place – He knew how to get to the place. Do you understand what you have to do? Do you understand what to do? NB! The subject in the main clause and the subordinate clause must be the same. Look at the following sentence: My father told me what I should do. In sentences where the indirect object (me) is the same as the subject of the subordinate clause (l), we can use an infinitive construction to improve our language: My father told me what to do. Using Special Expressions There are lots of words and expressions which can be used to bind sentences together and which can help us continue a special line of thought.
Here are some which you may find useful: to begin with/flrst of all – for det f?rste in the first place secondly, thirdly for det andre, for det tredJe finally – til slutt to sum up – for ? runde av besides – dessuten/dessutan turtnermore – videre/vidare in addition – i tillegg on the contrary – tvert i mot on the one hand – p? den ene siden / p? den eine sida on the other hand – p? den andre siden / p? den andre sida because of this – p? grunn av dette consequently – derfor for this reason – av denne grunn above all – framfor alt first and foremost – f?rst og fremst in spite of, despite – til tross for / trass i yet, still, nevertheless – likevel
