Det er en dårlig unnskyldning.

to be

Breakdown of Det er en dårlig unnskyldning.

• en: a
• det: it
• dårlig: bad

Questions & Answers about Det er en dårlig unnskyldning.

What does Det er mean here?

Det er is a very common Norwegian pattern meaning it is, that is, or sometimes just a general statement like there is/there are, depending on context.

In Det er en dårlig unnskyldning, the most natural English rendering is often That’s a bad excuse or It’s a bad excuse.

Here, det does not have to refer to a specific neuter noun. It often works as a general subject in Norwegian.

What is er?

Er is the present tense of å være, which means to be.

So:

• å være = to be
• er = am / is / are

Examples:

• Jeg er trøtt = I am tired
• Hun er hjemme = She is at home
• Det er en dårlig unnskyldning = It/that is a bad excuse

Why is it en unnskyldning and not ei unnskyldning or et unnskyldning?

Unnskyldning is a feminine noun, but in Bokmål, feminine nouns can often be written with either:

• ei unnskyldning
• en unnskyldning

Both are acceptable in Bokmål.

You cannot use et, because et is for neuter nouns.

So this sentence uses a very common Bokmål style where feminine nouns take en instead of ei.