de
/diː/
In Norwegian, the English phrase "they" is translated as de or dei.
Meaning: third-person plural pronoun (pron)
Ways to say it
| Norwegian | IPA |
|---|---|
| de | /diː/ |
| dei | /dɛɪː/ /dɛɪ/ (unstressed) |
The word is a third-person plural pronoun.
Which one should you use?
The form de is the standard written form used in Bokmål. The form dei is the standard written form in Nynorsk and is also very common in many spoken Norwegian dialects.
How do you pronounce it?
/diː/
Did you know?
- While de is a pronoun, the same spelling is used for the preposition 'of' or 'from' because it was borrowed from the French word de.
- In very formal or archaic Norwegian, the word De with a capital letter was used as a polite version of 'you' to show respect to strangers or superiors.
- In some Norwegian regions, the objective form dem is used as the subject of the sentence, where English would always use 'they'.
Examples in context
- De lo av meg.They were laughing at me.This sentence shows how to use de to describe an action being performed by a group toward someone.Tatoeba #4992023 by Improbably, translation #4983558 by CK
- De vil ha mer.They want more.This sentence demonstrates using de to express a desire or want.Tatoeba #4756011 by garborg, translation #1820314 by Spamster
- De så deg ikke.They didn't see you.This sentence shows the use of de in a negative sentence.Tatoeba #10942637 by Mayk, translation #10178746 by CH
- De kommer til møtet senere.They will arrive at the meeting later.
- De løper i parken.They are running in the park.
- De er på kafeen.They are at the café.
- 502 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ingrid and Jakob are talking about their neighbors.
- IngridHvor er de?Where are they?
- JakobDe er i hagen.They are in the garden.
- IngridEr de ute nå?Are they outside now?
- JakobJa, de er ute.Yes, they are outside.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “they” translations and entries de, dei, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, dei, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
