barn
/bɑːɳ/neuter
The Norwegian word for "child" is barn.
barn refers to a son or daughter, or more generally to someone's offspring. In informal settings, you may also hear the term unge used to refer to a child.
Meaning: son or daughter, someone's child (noun)
Which one should you use?
barn can be used to refer to a single child or to a collective group of children in its indefinite plural form. For example, while it means one child, it is also the word used for "children" in general.
How does it change in a sentence?
barn is a neuter noun. To specify a single child, use the definite singular form barnet (the child). To speak about a group of children in the definite form, use barna (the children). The plural indefinite form of barn remains barn, meaning the word is the same for both one child and multiple children.
How do you pronounce it?
/bɑːɳ/
Did you know?
- The Norwegian word for child is a 'false friend' for English speakers because it looks and sounds like the English word 'barn', which is a building for livestock.
- The word barn shares a common ancestor with the English word 'bear', in the sense of 'to bear a child'.
- The word unge is often used for children, but it also means 'young' or 'offspring' when referring to animals, such as birds or fish.
Examples in context
- Jeg er et stort barn.I'm a big child.This sentence shows how to use barn to describe oneself.Tatoeba #10941073 by Mayk, translation #4439452 by fanty
- Hun tok seg av barnet.She looked after the child.This sentence demonstrates the use of the definite singular form barnet.Tatoeba #2948516 by eirik174, translation #308053 by CK
- Eit barn spelar harpe.A child is playing harp.This sentence provides an example of the indefinite singular form barn.Tatoeba #12473760 by Just_Some_Guy, translation #381954 by CM
- Denne unge damen er et flott barn.This young lady is a wonderful child.
- Se på den lille gutten som leker i parken!Look at the little boy playing in the park!
- 31 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Andreas and Emma are talking about their families at a cafe.
- AndreasHar du et barn?Do you have a child?
- EmmaJa, jeg har ett barn.Yes, I have one child.
- AndreasEr barnet ditt en jente?Is your child a girl?
- EmmaNei, det er en gutt.No, it is a boy.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “child” translations and entries barn, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries barn, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
