Breakdown of Bowlingkulen ligger på kulestativet.
på
on
ligge
to lie (be located)
bowlingkulen
the bowling ball
kulestativet
the bowling-ball rack
Questions & Answers about Bowlingkulen ligger på kulestativet.
Why is there no separate word for the in this sentence?
In Norwegian, the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun.
So:
- bowlingkule = bowling ball
- bowlingkulen = the bowling ball
And:
- kulestativ = ball rack / ball stand
- kulestativet = the ball rack / the stand
So the sentence already includes the twice, just as endings:
- -en in bowlingkulen
- -et in kulestativet
Why does bowlingkulen end in -en, but kulestativet ends in -et?
Those endings reflect grammatical gender and noun class.
- bowlingkulen comes from en bowlingkule → definite singular bowlingkulen
- kulestativet comes from et kulestativ → definite singular kulestativet
So:
- en-word → definite form often ends in -en
- et-word → definite form often ends in -et
This is very common in Norwegian.
What do bowlingkulen and kulestativet literally break down into?