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NORWEGIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Norwegian word of the day: Fredagsfølelse

It doesn't actually need to be Friday for you to feel the effects of this particular word, but it helps.

Pictured is the Norwegian word of the day.
Photo by Francesco Ungaro on Unsplash and Nicolas Raymond/FlickR

What does it mean?

Fredagsfølelse is a compound word with a pretty direct English translation. Fredag means Friday, and følse means feeling. The verb for feeling something is å føle. Combined, they make Friday feeling.

The word is used in the same way as it is in English. It can be used to describe the optimism, relief or sudden rush of energy one may feel on a Friday with the weekend ahead of them.

How you wish to express this Friday feeling is down to you. For many, it may mean grabbing a beer after work to christen the weekend. For others, it may mean grabbing a bag of chips and indulging in their latest binge-watch.

Norwegians themselves are pretty keen on tex-mex tacos. This is mainly due to a marketing ploy that became a tradition for many families.

The other way to use this word would be if you had a Friday feeling on a day other than Friday. Although while having that extra spring in your step may feel great at first – the reality of realising it is, in fact, only Tuesday may lead to disappointment.

However, say it’s Wednesday or Thursday, and you’ve signed off work and are looking forward to a long weekend. Then, you are likely to feel the anticipation of the fredagsfølelse.

Use it like this:

Jeg har skikkelig fredagsfølelse i dag!

I have a proper Friday feeling today!

Jeg må ha taco til middag for å få den fredagsfølelsen.

I need tacos for dinner to get that Friday feeling.

Jeg har skikkelig fredagsfølelse, selv om det bare er torsdag.

I have a proper Friday feeling, even though it’s only Thursday.

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For members

NORWEGIAN WORD OF THE DAY

Norwegian word of the day: Middelmådig

Given that Norwegians don’t like to kick up too much of a fuss, they sometimes settle for less.

Norwegian word of the day: Middelmådig

What does it mean?

Middelmådig is the Norwegian word for mediocre. The word is borrowed from Danish, but this should come as no surprise.

Swedish, Danish and Norwegian are considered mutually intelligible, meaning users of the languages should be able to understand one another.

Norwegian, particularly, borrows plenty of words from Swedish and Danish. This was due to the country’s various historical unions with the other two nations.

This led to a large influence of Swedish and Danish on the Norwegian language, as Norway was typically the poorer and less influential country.

Things have changed these days , and the countries stand on a more even footing with one another, mostly thanks to oil. Still, the impact of Swedish and Danish has remained, despite various movements to make the language moreNorwegian

Back to the word middelmådig, Norwegians typically don’t like confrontation. Therefore, some may settle for mediocrity. This is most likely to happen at a restaurant when the food isn’t totally awful (helt dårlig), but it’s not great – or arrived colder than it was meant to. 

The word isn’t used just for mediocrity. It directly translates to the middle level or middle strength. Therefore, you can use the word to describe being adequate at something. In this sense, you would “være middelmådig begavet,” or “be moderately gifted” when translated to English.

Use it like this:

Mine fotballferdigheter er middelmådige.

My football skills are mediocre.

Kunnskapen min om dette emnet er middelmådig.

My knowledge of this subject is mediocre.

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