ettermiddag
masculine
The Norwegian word for afternoon is ettermiddag.
The term refers to the part of the day between noon and evening. When you want to say "this afternoon," you use the phrase i ettermiddag instead of using a possessive construction. To describe a recurring habit or a general time of day, such as "in the afternoon," you use om ettermiddagen.
Meaning: part of the day between noon and evening (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word ettermiddag is a compound of etter, meaning "after" and middag, meaning "midday" or "dinner".
How does it change in a sentence?
The word is a masculine noun. The plural form is ettermiddager, and the definite form is ettermiddagen, which is used when referring to a specific afternoon or "the" afternoon in general.
Did you know?
- Because Norway has extreme seasonal light, the experience of ettermiddag varies wildly. In the midnight sun of summer, an ettermiddag can be blindingly bright at 10 PM.
- While English speakers use 'noon' to denote 12:00, a Norwegian might use middag to refer to the actual meal itself, making the afternoon conceptually the time 'after the meal'.
- In some Norwegian dialects, the distinction between 'afternoon' and 'evening' is blurred, and people may use different words for the time depending on how much light is left.
Examples in context
- Jeg er ledig i ettermiddag.I am free this afternoon.This sentence shows how to express being free "this afternoon" using ettermiddag.Tatoeba #2950209 by eirik174, translation #257325 by mamat
- Kva gjer du om ettermiddagen?What do you do in the afternoon?This sentence demonstrates how to use ettermiddag to ask about general activities in the afternoon.Tatoeba #12685870 by Barend, translation #464538 by lukaszpp
- Er du ledig fredag ettermiddag?Are you free on Friday afternoon?This sentence shows how to specify a time on a particular day using ettermiddag.Tatoeba #2907187 by eirik174, translation #18478 by CN
- 18 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ingrid and Andreas are planning a meeting.
- IngridKan vi møtes i ettermiddag?Can we meet this afternoon?
- AndreasJa, det passer fint for meg.Yes, that works well for me.
- IngridHva med klokken fire i ettermiddag?How about four o'clock this afternoon?
- AndreasDet høres bra ut, Ingrid.That sounds good, Ingrid.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “afternoon” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
