Gjeldsgraden er høy, men belåningsgraden er lav.

Because -en is the definite ending for many singular en-words in Norwegian.

• en grad = a degree / a ratio
• graden = the degree / the ratio

So:

• gjeldsgraden = the debt ratio
• belåningsgraden = the loan-to-value ratio or the degree of borrowing

In this sentence, Norwegian uses the definite form because it is talking about those specific measures as concepts already understood in context.

That -s- is a very common linking sound/letter in Norwegian compounds.

The word is built like this:

• gjeld = debt
• grad = degree, ratio
• gjeldsgrad = debt ratio
• gjeldsgraden = the debt ratio

The -s- does not mean possession here. It just helps connect the parts of the compound. English learners often expect something like debt degree, but Norwegian often inserts this linking -s- in compound nouns.

It is a compound noun made from several parts:

• belåning = borrowing / mortgaging / financing against an asset
• grad = degree / ratio
• -en = the definite singular ending

So:

• belåningsgrad = loan ratio / loan-to-value ratio
• belåningsgraden = the loan ratio / the loan-to-value ratio

This is very typical Norwegian word formation: several ideas are packed into one long noun.

Because høy and lav are predicative adjectives here: they come after er and describe the subject.

In Norwegian, you do not use an article before this kind of adjective.

• Gjeldsgraden er høy = The debt ratio is high
• Belåningsgraden er lav = The loan ratio is low

Compare that with an adjective directly before a noun:

• en høy gjeldsgrad = a high debt ratio
• en lav belåningsgrad = a low loan ratio

So after er, you just use the adjective by itself.

They agree with the noun they describe.

Here, both gjeldsgraden and belåningsgraden are singular common gender nouns, so the basic adjective form is used:

• høy
• lav

Compare:

• Gjeldsgraden er høy = common gender singular
• Huset er høyt = neuter singular
• Tallene er høye = plural

So høy and lav are the correct forms for these two nouns.

Because men joins two full clauses, and each clause needs its own verb.

The sentence has two parts:

1. Gjeldsgraden er høy
2. men belåningsgraden er lav

You cannot normally leave out er in the second clause here. Norwegian works like English in this respect:

• The debt ratio is high, but the loan ratio is low

Both clauses need is / er.

Men means but. It introduces a contrast.

So the sentence is saying:

• one measure is high
• another measure is low

That contrast is the reason for men instead of og.

• og = and
• men = but

So men signals that the second statement goes against what you might expect from the first, or at least presents an important contrast.

Yes.

• å være = to be
• er = is / am / are

Examples:

• Jeg er = I am
• Du er = you are
• Han er = he is
• Gjeldsgraden er høy = the debt ratio is high

Norwegian uses er for all persons in the present tense, which is simpler than English.

Because Norwegian, like German and several other Germanic languages, uses compound nouns very freely.

Instead of several separate words, Norwegian often combines them into one:

• gjeld + s + grad → gjeldsgrad
• belåning + s + grad → belåningsgrad

This is completely normal and very common. For learners, it helps to get used to splitting long words into parts and identifying the main noun, which usually comes at the end.

Here, the main noun is grad.

A learner-friendly guide:

• gjeldsgraden ≈ yells-grah-den
• belåningsgraden ≈ beh-LOH-nings-grah-den

A few helpful points:

• gj at the start of gjeld is tricky for English speakers; in many dialects it sounds somewhat like y
• å sounds like the vowel in law for many learners
• graden has two syllables after grad: gra-den
• the stress in belåningsgraden falls strongly on lå

Exact pronunciation varies a bit by dialect, but this will get you close.

Sometimes Norwegian uses stor where English might say large, but with ratios, levels, and degrees, høy and lav are usually the most natural choices.

So:

• Gjeldsgraden er høy = natural
• Belåningsgraden er lav = natural

Using stor here would usually sound less precise or less idiomatic. With measurements, percentages, prices, risk, and similar abstract scales, Norwegian often prefers høy/lav.

The basic pattern is:

Subject + verb + adjective, men + subject + verb + adjective

So here:

• Gjeldsgraden = subject
• er = verb
• høy = adjective
• men = but
• belåningsgraden = subject
• er = verb
• lav = adjective

This is standard Norwegian main-clause word order and is very similar to English.