Lånetilbudet er skriftlig.

The loan offer is in writing.

Breakdown of Lånetilbudet er skriftlig.

• være: to be
• skriftlig: in writing
• lånetilbudet: the loan offer

Questions & Answers about Lånetilbudet er skriftlig.

Why is lånetilbudet written as one word?

Because Norwegian often makes compound nouns by joining words together.

• lån = loan
• tilbud = offer

So lånetilbud literally means loan offer.

Then -et is added at the end to make it definite:

• lånetilbud = a loan offer
• lånetilbudet = the loan offer

This is very common in Norwegian.

What does the ending -et mean in lånetilbudet?

-et is the definite article suffix for many neuter nouns in Norwegian.

So instead of putting a separate word like the in front, Norwegian often adds the definite article to the end of the noun:

• et tilbud = an offer
• tilbudet = the offer

Since lånetilbudet ends with -et, it means the loan offer.

Why is there no separate word for the?

Unlike English, Norwegian usually expresses the by attaching it to the noun.

Compare:

• English: the offer
• Norwegian: tilbudet

So in Lånetilbudet er skriftlig, the idea of the is already built into lånetilbudet.

Why is the verb er used here?