Eplet er råttent.

to be

Breakdown of Eplet er råttent.

• eplet: the apple
• råtten: rotten

Questions & Answers about Eplet er råttent.

Why is it eplet and not eple?

Because -et is the definite ending for many neuter nouns in Norwegian.

• et eple = an apple
• eplet = the apple

So eplet er råttent literally means the apple is rotten.

Unlike English, Norwegian often puts the at the end of the noun instead of using a separate word.

How do I know that eple is a neuter noun?

You know from its article in the indefinite form:

• et eple = an apple

In Norwegian, nouns have grammatical gender, and one common sign of a neuter noun is that it takes et in the indefinite singular.

That matters because the adjective has to match the noun’s gender and number.

Why is the adjective råttent and not just råtten?

Because adjectives in Norwegian change form to agree with the noun.

The basic form is often listed as råtten, but with a neuter singular noun like et eple, the adjective takes -t:

• en råtten banan = a rotten banana
• et råttent eple = a rotten apple

In this sentence, the same agreement happens after er:

• Eplet er råttent = The apple is rotten

So råttent is the correct neuter singular form.