Jeg må lese en bok.

I must read a book.

Breakdown of Jeg må lese en bok.

• jeg: I
• en: a
• bok: the book
• lese: to read
• må: must

Questions & Answers about Jeg må lese en bok.

Why do we use må in this sentence?

The verb må expresses necessity or obligation. It corresponds closely to English words like must or have to. It indicates that reading a book is something you need or are obliged to do, rather than simply a desire or possibility.

Why is lese used in its infinitive form?

After a modal verb in Norwegian (like må), the next verb usually appears in its infinitive form (without the marker å). So you see må lese instead of må leser.

Why is it en bok and not another article like et bok?

Norwegian has three grammatical genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. Bok is considered a feminine noun, but it traditionally uses the masculine article en as well. So the indefinite article for bok is commonly en. You might also see ei bok in some dialects, but en bok is more standard in many contexts.

How do you form the definite version of en bok?

To say the book, you attach the suffix -a or -en depending on the feminine or masculine usage. Standard usage is to treat bok as a feminine noun and say boka, although you might also encounter boken. Both are accepted in Norwegian, but boka is more common in modern usage.

Can I drop the article and just say Jeg må lese bok?

In Norwegian, you generally don’t drop the indefinite article before a singular countable noun. Saying Jeg må lese bok would sound unnatural. Sticking with Jeg må lese en bok is the proper way to indicate you need to read a (single) book.