bjørn
/bjøːɾn/masculine
The Norwegian word for bear is bjørn.
The word bjørn refers to the large mammal of the family Ursidae.
Meaning: large mammal of family Ursidae (noun)
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The masculine noun bjørn changes form depending on its role in a sentence. Use bjørnen to mean 'the bear' (definite form) and bjørner to mean 'bears' (plural form).
How do you pronounce it?
/bjøːɾn/
Did you know?
- In some old Norwegian dialects, the word for bear was avoided or replaced with euphemisms to avoid attracting the animal's attention through speech.
- The word bjørn is the root of the Norwegian word 'bjørnetjeneste', which means a 'favor' that actually ends up causing more trouble.
- The Norwegian word bjørn is a cognate of the English word 'brown' through their shared ancient root meaning 'shining' or 'brown'.
Examples in context
- Er det ein bjørn?Is that a bear?This sentence is useful for asking if a specific animal is a bjørn.Tatoeba #8554494 by vikvaering, translation #6005628 by mailohilohi
- Tom skaut ein bjørn.Tom shot a bear.This sentence is useful for describing an action involving a bjørn.Tatoeba #12486854 by Just_Some_Guy, translation #2799074 by AlanF_US
- Bjørnen bit seg sjølv.The bear bites itself.This sentence is useful for seeing how the definite form bjørnen is used when referring to the specific animal.Tatoeba #12486847 by Just_Some_Guy, translation #1121804 by cntrational
- Den norske bjørnen er et viktig symbol i norsk kultur.The Norwegian bear is an important symbol in Norwegian culture.
- 8 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sofie and Magnus are watching a nature documentary on TV.
- SofieSjå, der er ein bjørn!Look, there is a bear!
- MagnusJa, den bjørnen er stor.Yes, that bear is big.
- SofieEr den farleg, Magnus?Is it dangerous, Magnus?
- MagnusIkkje viss vi held avstand.Not if we keep our distance.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bear” translations and entries bjørn, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bjørn, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
