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Questions & Answers about Sykdommen er dødelig.
Why does sykdommen have -en at the end?
Because -en is the definite singular ending for many masculine nouns in Norwegian.
- sykdom = disease / illness
- sykdommen = the disease
So instead of putting a separate word like the in front, Norwegian often adds the definiteness to the end of the noun.
Why isn’t there a separate word for the?
In Norwegian, the is usually built into the noun as a suffix.
Compare:
- en sykdom = a disease
- sykdommen = the disease
This is very different from English, where the is a separate word.
What does er mean here?
er means is / am / are. It is the present tense of å være (to be).
So:
- Sykdommen er dødelig = The disease is deadly/fatal
A few useful forms of å være:
- er = am / is / are
- var = was / were
- har vært = have/has been
What does dødelig mean exactly?