Mastering Norwegian Noun Gender and Adjective Agreement: A Comprehensive Guide

In Norwegian, nouns are categorized into three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. Each gender affects the form of the definite article (the word for “the”) and how adjectives or possessives agree with the noun. However, many Bokmål speakers, especially in urban areas, simplify by treating feminine nouns as masculine, essentially reducing the language to a two-gender system (common and neuter).

1. Masculine (Maskulin)

• Most nouns in Norwegian are masculine.
• The indefinite article for masculine nouns is en (meaning “a” or “an”).
• In the definite form, masculine nouns end in -en. Examples:
• en gutt (a boy) → gutten (the boy)
• en hund (a dog) → hunden (the dog)

2. Neuter (Intetkjønn)

• Neuter nouns take the indefinite article et.
• In the definite form, neuter nouns end in -et. Examples:
• et hus (a house) → huset (the house)
• et barn (a child) → barnet (the child)

Adjectives

In Norwegian, the gender of a noun affects the form of the adjectives that modify it. The adjective must agree with the gender (masculine, feminine, or neuter) as well as the number (singular or plural) and definiteness (indefinite or definite) of the noun it describes. Here’s how this works in Norwegian Bokmål:

1. Indefinite Form (Unbestemt Form)

In the indefinite form, adjectives agree with the gender and number of the noun.

• Masculine: Adjective takes its base form.
• Example: en stor bil (a big car)
• Neuter: Adjective takes an -t ending.
• Example: et stort hus (a big house)
• Plural: For all genders, adjectives take an -e ending.
• Example: store biler (big cars), store hus (big houses)

2. Definite Form (Bestemt Form)

When the noun is in the definite form, the adjective takes an -e ending regardless of the noun’s gender. A definite article (usually den, det, or de) is placed before the adjective, corresponding to the gender and number of the noun.

• Masculine definite: den store bilen (the big car)
• Feminine definite: den store boka (the big book)
• Neuter definite: det store huset (the big house)
• Plural definite: de store bilene (the big cars)

Examples with Different Genders:

Let’s use the adjective “grønn” (green) with nouns of different genders and in both indefinite and definite forms.

Indefinite

• Masculine: en grønn bil (a green car)
• Feminine: ei grønn bok (a green book)
• Neuter: et grønt hus (a green house)
• Plural: grønne biler (green cars)

Definite

• Masculine: den grønne bilen (the green car)
• Feminine: den grønne boka (the green book)
• Neuter: det grønne huset (the green house)
• Plural: de grønne bilene (the green cars)

Summary Table

Key Points

• In the indefinite form:
• Masculine and feminine nouns take the base form of the adjective.
• Neuter nouns take an -t ending on the adjective.
• Plural nouns take an -e ending on the adjective.
• In the definite form: All nouns, regardless of gender, use an adjective with an -e ending and are preceded by a gender-appropriate definite article.

Possessive adjectives

In Norwegian, possessive adjectives (e.g., my, your, his, her, our, their) also change depending on the gender and number of the noun they modify. Unlike descriptive adjectives, possessive adjectives don’t have different forms for each gender, but their placement in relation to the noun can affect whether the noun is definite or indefinite. Here’s how it works:

Basic Forms of Possessive Adjectives

Here are the possessive adjectives in Norwegian:

For masculine, feminine, and plural nouns, the possessive adjective is used in its standard form (e.g., min, din, vår). For neuter nouns, the possessive adjective takes a -t ending (e.g., mitt, ditt, vårt).

Placement of Possessive Adjectives and Its Effect on Definiteness

Possessive adjectives can be placed before or after the noun. The position affects the definiteness of the noun:

Before the Noun: The noun remains indefinite. This is the most common structure in spoken Norwegian. Ex:

• Masculine: min bil (my car)
• Feminine: min bok (my book)
• Neuter: mitt hus (my house)
• Plural: mine bøker (my books)

After the Noun: The noun becomes definite (it’s equivalent to saying “the X of mine” in English). This structure is more formal and is used in both written and spoken Norwegian, especially in Nynorsk and in literary styles. Examples:

• Masculine: bilen min (my car / literally “the car of mine”)
• Feminine: boka mi (my book)
• Neuter: huset mitt (my house)
• Plural: bøkene mine (my books)

Examples with Different Genders

Here’s how possessive adjectives work with different noun genders, both with and without the definite form:

Summary

• Masculine, Feminine, and Plural: Use possessive in base form (e.g., min, din, vår).
• Neuter: Add a -t to possessive (e.g., mitt, ditt, vårt).
• Placement before the noun → Noun remains indefinite (e.g., min bil).
• Placement after the noun → Noun becomes definite (e.g., bilen min).