Barnet er livredd.

The child is terrified.

Breakdown of Barnet er livredd.

• være: to be
• barnet: the child
• livredd: terrified

Questions & Answers about Barnet er livredd.

Why is it barnet and not barn?

Barnet is the definite singular form of barn, so it means the child.

• et barn = a child
• barnet = the child

In Norwegian, definiteness is often added as a suffix to the noun instead of using a separate word like the in English.

Why does barnet end in -et?

Because barn is a neuter noun.

In Bokmål:

• common gender nouns often take -en in the definite singular
• neuter nouns often take -et in the definite singular

So:

• en bil → bilen = the car
• et barn → barnet = the child

What does er mean here?

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

So:

• jeg er = I am
• du er = you are
• barnet er = the child is

Norwegian does not change the verb for different persons the way English does. It is always er in the present tense.

What kind of word is livredd?