Månen er usynlig.

The moon is invisible.

Breakdown of Månen er usynlig.

• være: to be
• månen: the moon
• usynlig: invisible

Questions & Answers about Månen er usynlig.

Why is it månen and not just måne?

Because -en is the definite article attached to the noun.

• måne = moon / a moon
• månen = the moon

So Månen er usynlig means The moon is invisible.

This is very common in Norwegian: instead of putting a separate word for the before the noun, Norwegian often adds the article to the end of the noun.

• bok = book
• boken = the book

What gender is måne, and does that matter here?

Måne is usually masculine in Bokmål.

That is why the definite singular form is månen:

• en måne = a moon
• månen = the moon

Yes, gender matters because it affects articles and some adjective forms in other contexts.

Why is the verb er used here?

Er is the present tense of å være, which means to be.

So:

• å være = to be
• er = is / am / are

In this sentence:

• Månen = the moon
• er = is
• usynlig = invisible

So the structure is simply subject + verb + adjective.

Why is it and not ?