Fornøyelsen var stor.

to be

Breakdown of Fornøyelsen var stor.

• stor: big
• fornøyelsen: the pleasure

Questions & Answers about Fornøyelsen var stor.

Why is it fornøyelsen and not fornøyelse?

Because fornøyelsen is the definite form of the noun fornøyelse.

• fornøyelse = pleasure / a pleasure
• fornøyelsen = the pleasure

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

So:

• en fornøyelse = a pleasure
• fornøyelsen = the pleasure

Why is there no separate word for the?

Because Norwegian usually puts the definite article onto the end of the noun.

Here, the ending -en in fornøyelsen already means the.

So you do not need a separate article before the noun in this sentence.

Compare:

• en bok = a book
• boken = the book

The same pattern is used here:

• en fornøyelse = a pleasure
• fornøyelsen = the pleasure

What gender is fornøyelse, and how does that affect the sentence?