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Questions & Answers about Restauranten er tom.
Why does Restauranten have the ending -en instead of a separate word for “the”?
In Norwegian, the definite article is added as a suffix to the noun rather than as a separate word. The noun restaurant becomes Restauranten to mean “the restaurant.” This is a common grammatical feature in Norwegian.
How does the verb er function in this sentence?
The word er is the present tense of the verb å være (to be) and functions as the linking verb in the sentence. It connects the subject Restauranten with the predicate adjective tom, much like “is” does in the English sentence “The restaurant is empty.”
Why is the adjective tom not inflected in this sentence?
In Norwegian, adjectives used in the predicate position (after a linking verb) typically remain in their base form regardless of the noun’s gender or definiteness. So even though adjectives might change form when they appear before a noun (for example, tomme in “tomme restauranter”), in Restauranten er tom the adjective stays as tom.
How does the word order of Restauranten er tom compare to that of English?
The sentence follows a subject-linking verb-adjective order, which is very similar to English. Here, Restauranten (the subject) comes first, followed by er (the linking verb), and then tom (the adjective), mirroring the English structure in “The restaurant is empty.”
What insight does this sentence give about Norwegian noun and adjective usage in definite contexts?
This sentence illustrates two key points:
- Definite nouns in Norwegian have the definite article attached as a suffix (as in Restauranten).
- When adjectives follow a linking verb (predicative use), they are generally not inflected regardless of whether the noun is definite or indefinite. This rule helps learners understand that while attributive adjectives change form based on determinacy and gender, predicate adjectives like tom remain unchanged.