Norwegian builds most of its adjectives out of nouns and verbs using a small kit of suffixes. The good news for an English speaker is how transparent they are: -bar is almost exactly English -able, -løs is -less, -full is -ful, and once you know the meaning of each ending you can decode — and often coin — adjectives on sight. The one quirk to nail down is agreement: the -ig and -lig endings break the normal neuter -t rule. This page walks through each suffix, its meaning, its productivity, and that agreement trap.
-ig and -lig: the workhorses
These two are the most common adjective endings in the language. They form adjectives from nouns, verbs and other adjectives, usually meaning "characterised by / relating to":
| Suffix | Examples | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| -ig | viktig (important), billig (cheap), riktig (correct), tydelig... | "having the quality of" |
| -lig | vennlig (friendly), daglig (daily), sannsynlig (probable), vanskelig (difficult) | "like / pertaining to" |
Det er et viktig møte i morgen tidlig.
It's an important meeting tomorrow morning.
Hun er alltid vennlig mot nye kolleger.
She is always friendly to new colleagues.
Det er ikke sannsynlig at det blir regn.
It's not likely that it'll rain.
The line between -ig and -lig is largely historical — you memorise which word takes which (viktig but vanskelig). Don't try to derive it.
The crucial quirk: no neuter -t
Normally a Norwegian adjective adds -t in the neuter singular: fin → fint, kald → kaldt. But adjectives ending in -ig and -lig are invariable in the neuter — they take no -t:
Det var et viktig spørsmål.
It was an important question.
Dette er et vanskelig problem.
This is a difficult problem.
Vi har et hyggelig hjem.
We have a cosy home.
et viktig spørsmål — not et viktigt spørsmål; et vanskelig problem — not et vanskeligt problem. The reason is phonological: tacking -t onto a stem already ending in -g would create an awkward -gt that Norwegian simply doesn't write here, so these adjectives keep one form across all genders.
| Masc./Fem. | Neuter | Plural/Definite | |
|---|---|---|---|
| viktig | en viktig sak | et viktig møte | viktige saker |
| vennlig | en vennlig mann | et vennlig smil | vennlige folk |
They do still take the plural/definite -e (viktige, vennlige) — it is only the neuter -t that is blocked.
-som: disposition and tendency
The suffix -som forms adjectives describing a tendency or disposition, often from verbs or nouns:
Filmen var utrolig morsom.
The film was incredibly funny.
Heisen er treg og langsom.
The lift is sluggish and slow.
Han følte seg ensom i den nye byen.
He felt lonely in the new city.
morsom (fun/funny), langsom (slow), ensom (lonely), virksom (effective), sparsom (frugal), tålsom (tolerant). Unlike -ig/-lig, -som adjectives do take the regular neuter -t: et morsomt innslag ("a funny segment"), et langsomt tempo.
-bar = English "-able"
This is the most rewarding suffix for an English speaker, because it maps almost perfectly onto -able / -ible. Added to a verb, -bar means "able to be (verb)-ed":
| Norwegian | From | English |
|---|---|---|
| brukbar | bruke (use) | usable |
| lesbar | lese (read) | readable / legible |
| holdbar | holde (hold/keep) | durable / (food) keeps well |
| synlig... → synbar | se (see) | visible (usually synlig) |
| spiselig / spisbar | spise (eat) | edible |
| ubrukbar |
| unusable |
Denne gamle mobilen er fortsatt brukbar.
This old phone is still usable.
Håndskriften hans er knapt lesbar.
His handwriting is barely legible.
Melken er holdbar til på fredag.
The milk keeps until Friday.
-bar is productive: you can attach it to many verbs and be understood. Negate it with the prefix u-: ubrukbar (unusable), uforklarlig... (note that one is -lig). -bar adjectives take the normal neuter -t: et brukbart verktøy.
-løs = English "-less"
Just as transparent: -løs means "without / lacking", mapping straight onto English -less. Note the ø:
| Norwegian | From | English |
|---|---|---|
| arbeidsløs | arbeid (work) | unemployed / workless |
| håpløs | håp (hope) | hopeless |
| hjelpeløs | hjelp (help) | helpless |
| meningsløs | mening (meaning) | meaningless |
| fryktløs | frykt (fear) | fearless |
Han har vært arbeidsløs i et halvt år.
He has been unemployed for six months.
Situasjonen virket helt håpløs.
The situation seemed completely hopeless.
Det er meningsløst å krangle om dette.
It's pointless to argue about this.
Note the neuter: -løs takes the regular -t → meningsløst, håpløst. Many -løs adjectives use a linking -s- before the suffix (arbeid-s-løs, mening-s-løs), a join you'll also meet in compounds.
-full and -isk
-full = English "-ful", meaning "full of": verdifull (valuable, "worth-ful"), meningsfull (meaningful), håpefull (hopeful), fredfull (peaceful). It is the positive counterpart to -løs:
Det var en verdifull leksjon for oss alle.
It was a valuable lesson for all of us.
Hun er optimistisk og håpefull om framtida.
She is optimistic and hopeful about the future.
-isk forms adjectives from nouns, often international/learned vocabulary, and maps onto English -ic / -ical: praktisk (practical), typisk (typical), logisk (logical), historisk (historical), politisk (political). It usually drops a final -t before the neuter (the -sk ending resists -t): et praktisk valg, et typisk eksempel — like -ig/-lig, no neuter -t:
Det er et praktisk og billig alternativ.
It's a practical and cheap alternative.
Dette er et typisk norsk fenomen.
This is a typical Norwegian phenomenon.
-aktig and -et: "-ish" and "covered in"
Two smaller but useful endings. -aktig = English "-ish / -like", a resemblance: barnaktig (childish), drømmeaktig (dreamlike), gråaktig (greyish). -et(e) turns a noun into "having / covered in": steinete (stony, "stone-y"), sølete (muddy), flekkete (spotty, "covered in spots"):
Stien var smal og steinete.
The path was narrow and stony.
Det er barnaktig å sutre over så lite.
It's childish to whine about so little.
Common Mistakes
❌ Det var et viktigt møte.
Incorrect — neuter -t added to an -ig adjective.
✅ Det var et viktig møte.
It was an important meeting.
Adjectives in -ig take no neuter -t: et viktig møte, not et viktigt møte. This is the single most common error with these suffixes.
❌ Dette er et vanskeligt problem.
Incorrect — neuter -t added to a -lig adjective.
✅ Dette er et vanskelig problem.
This is a difficult problem.
Same rule for -lig: et vanskelig problem. The -ligt spelling is Danish, not Norwegian — don't borrow it.
❌ Telefonen er fortsatt brukbart.
Incorrect — wrong agreement; subject is common gender.
✅ Telefonen er fortsatt brukbar.
The phone is still usable.
-bar is a normal adjective: it agrees like any other. Telefonen is common gender, so brukbar (no -t); the neuter would be et brukbart verktøy.
❌ Han har vært arbeidslaus lenge.
Incorrect — wrong spelling of the suffix.
✅ Han har vært arbeidsløs lenge.
He has been unemployed for a long time.
The "-less" suffix is -løs, written with ø in Bokmål: arbeidsløs, håpløs. (The -laus spelling is Nynorsk.)
❌ Filmen var veldig morsomig.
Incorrect — invented double suffix.
✅ Filmen var veldig morsom.
The film was very funny.
morsom already carries the -som suffix; you don't stack -ig on top of it. Pick the right suffix for the word — they aren't interchangeable.
Key Takeaways
- -ig / -lig = "having the quality of" (viktig, vennlig) — the most common endings, and they take no neuter -t (et viktig møte). So does -isk (et praktisk valg).
- -som = disposition (morsom, langsom, ensom); takes the regular neuter -t.
- -bar = English -able (brukbar, lesbar, holdbar) — productive; negate with u- (ubrukbar).
- -løs = English -less (arbeidsløs, håpløs, meningsløs) — written with ø; -full is its positive twin (verdifull, meningsfull).
- -aktig = "-ish" (barnaktig); -et(e) = "covered in / having" (steinete).
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Start learning Norwegian→Related Topics
- Irregular Adjective AgreementB1 — The adjectives that break the -/-t/-e pattern — the suppletive liten/lita/lite/små/lille, the -ig/-lig and -sk adjectives that refuse the neuter -t (et viktig møte, et norsk flagg), the -el/-en/-er syncope (gammel → gamle), and the indeclinable class (bra, ekte, moderne, rosa) that never changes at all.
- Noun-Forming Suffixes: -het, -sjon, -ing, -dom, -skapB1 — The productive noun-making suffixes — -het, -ing/-ning, -sjon, -else, -dom, -skap, -er, -eri — what each one means and, crucially, the gender it locks in, so you can read off gender for hundreds of derived nouns automatically.
- Diminutives and Intensifying PrefixesB2 — Norwegian has no productive diminutive suffix — it sizes things down with små-/lille compounds and the affectionate -is and -en, and sizes them UP with intensifier prefixes kjempe-, super-, mega-, kanon-, dritt- and adverbs like skikkelig and sinnssykt.