Flyet har en ødelagt vinge.

to have

Breakdown of Flyet har en ødelagt vinge.

• en: a
• flyet: the plane
• ødelagt: damaged

Questions & Answers about Flyet har en ødelagt vinge.

Why is flyet one word, and what does -et mean?

In Norwegian, the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun.

• et fly = a plane
• flyet = the plane

Here, fly is a neuter noun, so its definite singular ending is -et.

So flyet literally means the plane.

Why is it et fly but en vinge?

Because Norwegian nouns have grammatical gender.

• fly is a neuter noun: et fly
• vinge is a common-gender noun: en vinge

That is why the sentence mixes flyet and en vinge. This is completely normal: each noun keeps its own gender.

Why is there an en before vinge?

Because vinge is singular and indefinite here.

• en vinge = a wing
• vingen = the wing

So Flyet har en ødelagt vinge means the plane has a broken wing, not the broken wing.

Norwegian often uses the indefinite form in this kind of sentence when introducing something as part of a larger object.

Why is the adjective ødelagt and not something else?