språk
/sproːk/neuter
The English word 'language' is translated into Norwegian as språk. Wiktionary also lists talemål and tungemål.
Meaning: body of words used as a form of communication (noun)
Ways to say it
| Norwegian | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| språk | /sproːk/ | neuter |
| talemål | neuter | |
| tungemål | neuter |
The term is used to describe a body of words used as a form of communication, whether referring to the abstract concept of language or a specific linguistic system.
What does it mean word for word?
The word talemål is a compound of tale (speech/talk) and mål (language/measure/goal), which literally translates to 'speech-language'.
Which one should you use?
språk is the general term for a language or the abstract concept of language. In contrast, talemål refers specifically to a spoken dialect or the spoken form of a language. tungemål is a more formal and traditional term for language.
How does it change in a sentence?
To refer to a specific language, you use the definite form språket in both Bokmål and Nynorsk.
How do you pronounce it?
/sproːk/
Did you know?
- The word språk actually shares an ancestor with the Middle Low German word sprâke, which is a distant relative of the English word 'speak'.
- In the phrase talemål, the word mål can also mean 'measure' or 'goal'. This links the concept of a language to a standard of measurement.
- The formal term tungemål uses the word tunge, which means 'tongue'. This mirrors the archaic English use of 'tongue' as a synonym for a specific language.
Examples in context
- Fransk er eit språk.French is a language.This sentence is useful for identifying a specific language using språk.Tatoeba #12490824 by Just_Some_Guy, translation #8410244 by CK
- Eg elskar det språket.I love that language.This sentence shows how to use the definite form språket with språk.Tatoeba #12473479 by Just_Some_Guy, translation #5953582 by mailohilohi
- Ett språk er aldri nok.One language is never enough.This sentence demonstrates how to use språk when discussing the quantity of languages.Tatoeba #2977028 by eirik174, translation #614312 by Eldad
- Jeg ønsker å lære flere språk.I want to learn more languages.
- Mitt morsmål er norsk.My native tongue is Norwegian.
- God verbal kommunikasjon er viktig i forretningsverdenen.Good verbal communication is important in the business world.
- 51 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Nora and Andreas are discussing a course at a language school.
- NoraHvilket språk vil du lære?Which language do you want to learn?
- AndreasJeg vil lære et nytt språk.I want to learn a new language.
- NoraEr det et vanskelig språk?Is it a difficult language?
- AndreasJa, det er et veldig vanskelig språk.Yes, it is a very difficult language.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “language” translations and entries språk, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries språk, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
