Dagen er varm, men natten er kald.

The day is warm, but the night is cold.

Breakdown of Dagen er varm, men natten er kald.

• være: to be
• kald: cold
• men: but
• dagen: the day
• varm: warm
• natten: the night

Questions & Answers about Dagen er varm, men natten er kald.

Why do we use Dagen instead of Dag?

In Norwegian, nouns have a definite form to indicate the. For the masculine noun dag (day), the definite form is dagen (the day). So Dagen er varm means “The day is warm.”

What is the purpose of men in the sentence?

Men is the Norwegian word for but, used to connect two contrasting statements. Here, the sentence contrasts a warm day with a cold night.

Why is the phrase natten er kald rather than natt er kald?

Much like dag/dagen, the feminine noun natt (night) becomes natten in the definite form, meaning the night. Hence, natten er kald translates to “the night is cold.”

How do I know natt is feminine when it ends with -en in the definite form?

In Norwegian, nouns can be masculine, feminine, or neuter. While many feminine and masculine nouns share the -en definite article, you typically learn noun genders alongside the noun itself. For many words, it’s a matter of memorization and exposure.

Why is the adjective kald not changed to match natten?

Norwegian adjectives do not change for gender in their indefinite and singular definite forms. Kald stays the same whether the noun is masculine, feminine, or neuter.