Hodelykten har nye batterier.

Hodelykt means a headlamp / head torch in its indefinite form.

Hodelykten means the headlamp. The ending -en is the common definite singular ending for masculine nouns in Bokmål.

So:

• en hodelykt = a headlamp
• hodelykten = the headlamp

In this sentence, Norwegian uses the definite form because it is referring to a specific headlamp.

Har means has, while er means is / are.

So:

• Hodelykten har nye batterier = The headlamp has new batteries
• Hodelykten er ny = The headlamp is new

In this sentence, the speaker is talking about what the headlamp possesses, not describing what it is.

Because batterier is plural, the adjective must also take the plural form.

The adjective ny changes like this:

• ny = new, singular common gender
• nytt = new, singular neuter
• nye = new, plural and also definite forms

So:

• et nytt batteri = a new battery
• nye batterier = new batteries

That is why the sentence has nye batterier.

Batterier is the indefinite plural form: batteries
Batteriene is the definite plural form: the batteries

So:

• har nye batterier = has new batteries
• har de nye batteriene = has the new batteries

In this sentence, the batteries are not marked as definite, so batterier is the natural choice.

Hodelykt is usually treated as a masculine noun in Bokmål:

• en hodelykt
• hodelykten

Gender matters because it affects articles and endings.

However, in many dialects and in some informal Bokmål usage, feminine forms may also appear for nouns that can be feminine. Learners will most often see hodelykten in standard Bokmål, and that is a safe form to use.

Sometimes, yes, depending on style and noun gender usage.

In Bokmål, many nouns can be written with either masculine or feminine definite singular endings if the noun can be feminine:

• masculine-style: hodelykten
• feminine-style: hodelykta

But dictionaries and actual usage can vary from noun to noun. For a learner, hodelykten is a very standard and safe form in Bokmål.

It is a compound noun:

• hode = head
• lykt = lamp / light / lantern

So hodelykt literally means something like head-lamp, which matches English headlamp or head torch.

Compound nouns are extremely common in Norwegian.

No, this is standard Norwegian main-clause word order:

Subject + verb + object

• Hodelykten = subject
• har = verb
• nye batterier = object

This is very similar to English:

• The headlamp
  • has
    • new batteries

So this is a very straightforward sentence structure.

A rough guide in standard Eastern Norwegian would be:

HO-de-lyk-ten har NY-e bat-te-RI-er

A few useful points:

• The stress in hodelykten falls early, on HO.
• In batterier, the strongest stress is usually on ri: bat-te-RI-er.
• The r sound may sound different depending on dialect.

You do not need perfect pronunciation right away, but it helps to notice where the main stress falls.

Yes, but it means something different.

• Hodelykten har nye batterier = The headlamp has new batteries
• Hodelykten har et nytt batteri = The headlamp has a new battery

The first sentence implies more than one battery. The second says there is one battery.

So the plural batterier is important for meaning.

This is Bokmål.

In Nynorsk, the sentence would more likely be: Hovudlykta har nye batteri.

Some differences:

• hode → hovud
• hodelykten → hovudlykta
• batterier often becomes batteri as a plural form in Nynorsk

So if you are learning Bokmål, the original sentence is completely normal.