Bedeutung
The time has passed
Kultureller Hintergrund
Punctuality is a sign of character. Being 'for sent' to a social gathering is often more frowned upon than in Southern Europe. In Norwegian business, 'Det er for sent' is often used as a hard boundary for negotiations or project phases. Safety-wise, 'det er for sent' is used to warn hikers about turning back before dark. Norway has a strong tradition of adult education, leading to the frequent use of 'Det er aldri for sent å lære'.
Softening the blow
Add 'dessverre' (unfortunately) to make the phrase sound less rude when giving bad news.
Person vs. Action
Never say 'Du er for sent'. Always say 'Du er forsinket' or 'Du kommer for sent'.
Bedeutung
The time has passed
Softening the blow
Add 'dessverre' (unfortunately) to make the phrase sound less rude when giving bad news.
Person vs. Action
Never say 'Du er for sent'. Always say 'Du er forsinket' or 'Du kommer for sent'.
Dialect Power
Using 'seint' instead of 'sent' in Stavanger or Bergen will make you sound much more like a local.
The 5-minute rule
In Norway, being 5 minutes early is 'on time', being 'on time' is late, and being late is 'for sent'.
Teste dich selbst
Fill in the missing words to say 'It is too late'.
Jeg vil kjøpe billetter, men ___ ___ ___ sent.
We use 'det er' as the subject and 'for' as the intensifier.
Which sentence is correct when you arrive late to a meeting?
What should you say?
In Norwegian, you use the verb 'å komme' (to come/arrive) with 'for sent'.
Match the Norwegian phrase with its English meaning.
Match the following:
These are the most common variations of the phrase.
Complete the dialogue.
A: Skal vi dra på butikken? B: Nei, klokka er elleve. ___.
Since it is 11 PM, the shop is likely closed, making it 'too late'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Visuelle Lernhilfen
Sent vs. Forsinket
Aufgabensammlung
4 AufgabenJeg vil kjøpe billetter, men ___ ___ ___ sent.
We use 'det er' as the subject and 'for' as the intensifier.
What should you say?
In Norwegian, you use the verb 'å komme' (to come/arrive) with 'for sent'.
Ordne jedem Element links seinen Partner rechts zu:
These are the most common variations of the phrase.
A: Skal vi dra på butikken? B: Nei, klokka er elleve. ___.
Since it is 11 PM, the shop is likely closed, making it 'too late'.
🎉 Ergebnis: /4
Häufig gestellte Fragen
10 FragenIt can be blunt. To be polite, say 'Jeg beklager, men det er dessverre for sent.'
There is no difference in meaning. 'Sent' is the traditional Bokmål spelling, while 'seint' is more common in speech and Nynorsk.
Say 'Jeg er forsinket' (I am delayed) or 'Jeg kommer for sent' (I am arriving too late).
It's better to say 'Han er gammel'. Saying 'Han er for sent' doesn't make sense in Norwegian.
Say 'Det begynner å bli sent' or 'Det lir mot kveld'.
Yes, in front of adjectives. For example: 'for stor' (too big), 'for liten' (too small).
Yes, this means 'It is too late for me', often used when declining an invitation that is too late in the evening.
The opposite is 'for tidlig' (too early).
Yes, 'sent' rhymes with 'bent' (crooked) and 'hent' (fetch).
Yes, adding 'nå' (now) emphasizes that the opportunity has just passed.
Verwandte Redewendungen
Toget har gått
similarThat ship has sailed
Løpet er kjørt
synonymThe race is run / It's over
I siste liten
contrastAt the last minute
Bedre sent enn aldri
builds onBetter late than never
Forsinket
specialized formDelayed
