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🍎 Norwegian grammar: Plural nouns — rule, table and examples
Level A1
The rule
The indefinite plural usually adds -er: en bil → biler, ei jente → jenter. Short et-words (one syllable) do not change: et hus → hus, et barn → barn. The definite plural adds -ene: bilene, jentene, husene, but barna. Irregular: en mann → menn → mennene, et øye → øyne, en bror → brødre, ei hånd → hender.
Table
| Norwegian | English |
|---|---|
| en bil → biler → bilene | a car → cars → the cars |
| ei jente → jenter → jentene | a girl → girls → the girls |
| et eple → epler → eplene | an apple → apples → the apples |
| et hus → hus → husene | a house → houses → the houses |
| et barn → barn → barna | a child → children → the children |
| en mann → menn → mennene | a man → men → the men |
| en bror → brødre → brødrene | a brother → brothers → the brothers |
Examples
- Jeg har to brødre og tre søstre.
I have two brothers and three sisters. - Barna leker i hagen.
The children are playing in the garden. - Eplene er røde.
The apples are red.
Try it yourself
1. Jeg kjøper tre ____. (eple)
eple · eplene · epler · eplet
Show the answer
Answer: epler
2. Vi har to ____. (bil)
bil · bilen · bilene · biler
Show the answer
Answer: biler
3. I gata er det mange ____. (hus)
hus · husen · huser · huset
Show the answer
Answer: hus
4. ____ leker i hagen. (barn, bestemt)
Barn · Barna · Barnene · Barnet
Show the answer
Answer: Barna
5. Hvor er ____ mine? (sko, bestemt)
skoa · skoen · skoene · skoer
Show the answer
Answer: skoene
6. Leo har to ____. (bror)
bror · broren · brorer · brødre
Show the answer
Answer: brødre
More grammar topics
FAQ
How does “Plural nouns” work in Norwegian?
The indefinite plural usually adds -er: en bil → biler, ei jente → jenter. Short et-words (one syllable) do not change: et hus → hus, et barn → barn. The definite plural adds -ene: bilene, jentene, husene, but barna. Irregular: en mann → menn → mennene, et øye → øyne, en bror → brødre, ei hånd → hender.
How can I practise “Plural nouns”?
Open the free exercise in Komiks·Lab: 12 fill-in-the-gap tasks with instant feedback, and comics where the rule is used in real dialogues.