Skrammen er liten.

The scratch is small.

Breakdown of Skrammen er liten.

• være: to be
• liten: small
• skrammen: the scratch; scrape

Questions & Answers about Skrammen er liten.

What form is skrammen?

Skrammen is the definite singular form of skramme.

A useful mini-paradigm is:

• en skramme = an indefinite singular form
• skrammen = the definite singular form

In Bokmål, skramme is a noun that can often be treated as a feminine noun or as common gender, so skrammen is a normal written form.

Why isn’t there a separate word for the?

Because Norwegian usually puts definiteness on the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like English the.

So:

• skramme = scratch / scrape
• en skramme = a scratch / a scrape
• skrammen = the scratch / the scrape

This ending -en is doing the job that the does in English.

Why is it liten and not lite?

Because liten is the form that matches a singular common-gender noun.

The adjective liten is irregular, and its main forms are:

• liten = singular common gender
• lite = singular neuter
• små = plural
• lille = definite form used before a noun

Since skrammen is singular and treated here as common gender, liten is the right form.

Why isn’t it , since is definite?