en
/eːn/
The Norwegian indefinite article for "a" is en.
en is used as an indefinite article before singular nouns.
Which one should you use?
Norwegian uses different forms of the indefinite article depending on the grammatical gender of the noun: en is used for masculine nouns, ei for feminine nouns and et for neuter nouns.
How does it change in a sentence?
The indefinite article must agree with the grammatical gender of the noun. Specifically, use en for masculine, ei for feminine and et for neuter nouns.
How do you pronounce it?
/eːn/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use en for all nouns. Instead, you must choose between en, ei or et based on the noun's gender.
Did you know?
- Using the 'wrong' article, such as et instead of en, can occasionally change the meaning of the noun itself rather than just being a grammatical error.
- Norwegian lacks an indefinite article for plural nouns. To say 'some' or 'a few', speakers simply use the plural noun without any article at all.
- In written Norwegian, you will find that en is used as a generic pronoun meaning 'one' or 'a person', similar to the English sentence 'One must be careful'.
Examples in context
- Han er en tyv.He is a thief.This example shows how to use en to identify a person's role or identity.Tatoeba #10941162 by Mayk, translation #301724 by Dorenda
- Du er en lege.You are a doctor.This example demonstrates using en to identify a person's profession.Tatoeba #12757654 by pckv, translation #20125 by CK
- Ha en god tur!Have a good journey!This example shows how to use en in a common well-wishing phrase.Tatoeba #13374382 by gnofs, translation #871495 by shekitten
- 1228 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Magnus and Emma are at a café.
- EmmaVil du ha en kaffe?Do you want a coffee?
- MagnusJa, takk.Yes, please.
- EmmaJeg vil også ha en kaffe.I want a coffee too.
- MagnusDet er en god idé.That is a good idea.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry en, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
