Kameraobjektivet er nytt.

Because Norwegian usually writes compound nouns as one word.

So kameraobjektivet is built from:

• kamera = camera
• objektiv = lens
• kameraobjektiv = camera lens
• kameraobjektivet = the camera lens

This is very common in Norwegian. Where English often uses two words, Norwegian often makes a compound:

• bildør = car door
• sommerferie = summer vacation
• kameraobjektiv = camera lens

The last part of the compound is the main noun. Here, objektiv is the main noun, so the whole word behaves grammatically like objektiv.

The ending -et marks the noun as definite: the camera lens.

The base noun is:

• et objektiv = a lens

Its definite singular form is:

• objektivet = the lens

So:

• et kameraobjektiv = a camera lens
• kameraobjektivet = the camera lens

In Norwegian, definiteness is often shown by adding an ending to the noun instead of using a separate word like the.

Because objektiv is a neuter noun, and adjectives must agree with the noun.

The noun is:

• et objektiv

For a neuter singular noun, ny becomes nytt:

• en ny bil = a new car
• ei ny bok = a new book
• et nytt objektiv = a new lens

Since kameraobjektivet is still based on objektiv, the adjective also uses the neuter form:

• Kameraobjektivet er nytt.

So the key idea is: the whole compound takes its gender from the last part, objektiv, which is neuter.

Because after er, Norwegian normally uses the adjective in its predicative form, not the fully definite form.

Compare:

• det nye kameraobjektivet = the new camera lens
  
  • here the adjective comes before the noun, so it takes the definite form nye
• kameraobjektivet er nytt = the camera lens is new
  
  • here the adjective comes after er, so it stays in the normal agreeing form nytt

This is similar to English:

• the new lens
• the lens is new

So even though the noun is definite, the adjective after er is still nytt, not nye.

The basic form would usually be the indefinite singular:

• et kameraobjektiv = a camera lens

From that, you can build the other forms:

• et kameraobjektiv = a camera lens
• kameraobjektivet = the camera lens
• kameraobjektiver = camera lenses
• kameraobjektivene = the camera lenses

If you are looking a word up, you would usually look for kameraobjektiv or objektiv, not kameraobjektivet.

Yes. Er is the present tense of å være = to be.

So:

• jeg er = I am
• du er = you are
• han/hun er = he/she is
• det er = it is
• kameraobjektivet er nytt = the camera lens is new

Unlike English, Norwegian does not change the present tense form of to be depending on the subject. It is just er for all persons.

Yes, absolutely, if the context already makes it clear that you mean the camera lens.

• Objektivet er nytt. = The lens is new.
• Kameraobjektivet er nytt. = The camera lens is new.

The longer compound is more specific. The shorter version is more natural when everyone already knows which kind of lens you mean.

In Norwegian compounds, the last element is the head word. That means it determines things like:

• grammatical gender
• inflection
• the basic meaning category

So in kameraobjektiv:

• kamera tells you what kind of lens it is
• objektiv is the main noun

That is why the compound behaves like objektiv, not like kamera.

A useful rule:

• in a compound noun, focus on the last word for grammar

No, standard Norwegian normally requires the subject to be stated.

So you say:

• Kameraobjektivet er nytt.

Not normally just:

• Er nytt.

This is different from some languages where the subject can be omitted because the verb ending already shows who or what the subject is. In Norwegian, the verb form usually does not give enough information by itself, so the subject is usually needed.

It follows a very basic Norwegian sentence pattern:

• Subject + verb + adjective/complement

So:

• Kameraobjektivet = subject
• er = verb
• nytt = predicative adjective

This is one of the most common sentence types in Norwegian.

If you change the word order for emphasis, Norwegian often keeps the verb in second position:

• Nytt er kameraobjektivet would sound unnatural in ordinary speech
• but other fronting patterns in Norwegian often still keep the verb second

For this simple sentence, Kameraobjektivet er nytt is the normal and natural order.

A learner-friendly way to think of it is:

• kamera
  • objektivet

The main stress is usually on the stressed syllable of objektiv, so the second part is quite important in pronunciation.

A rough guide for English speakers:

• kamera sounds roughly like kah-meh-rah
• objektiv sounds roughly like ob-yek-TEEV
• objektivet adds the definite ending, roughly ob-yek-tee-veh

Exact pronunciation varies somewhat by dialect, but the important learning point is that compound words are pronounced as one unit, not like a full pause between kamera and objektivet.

You would say:

• et nytt kameraobjektiv

Here is the breakdown:

• et = a/an for a neuter noun
• nytt = new, agreeing with the neuter noun
• kameraobjektiv = camera lens

Compare:

• et nytt kameraobjektiv = a new camera lens
• kameraobjektivet er nytt = the camera lens is new

This is a very useful contrast to learn:

• before the noun: adjective + noun
• after er: noun + er
  • adjective