Barna leker i hagen.

In Norwegian, definiteness is usually built into the noun itself rather than shown with a separate word like the.

• barn = child / children (depending on context)
• barna = the children

So -a here marks the definite plural.

This is a very common pattern in Norwegian:

• en bil = a car
• bilen = the car
• biler = cars
• bilene = the cars

But barn is a special noun:

• et barn = a child
• barn = children
• barna = the children

So barna leker means the children are playing / the children play.

Yes. Barn is one of those Norwegian nouns where the indefinite singular and indefinite plural have the same form.

• et barn = a child
• barn = children
• barna = the children

That can feel strange to an English speaker, but Norwegian uses the article or the context to make the meaning clear.

For example:

• Jeg ser et barn. = I see a child.
• Jeg ser barn. = I see children.
• Jeg ser barna. = I see the children.

Leker is the present tense of the verb å leke, which means to play.

The basic forms are:

• å leke = to play
• leker = play / is playing / are playing
• lekte = played
• har lekt = have/has played

In Norwegian, the present tense often covers both:

• The children play in the garden
• The children are playing in the garden

So Barna leker i hagen can mean either one, depending on context.

Because Norwegian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun.

• hage = garden
• hagen = the garden

So:

• i hagen = in the garden

This is one of the biggest differences from English. Instead of the + noun, Norwegian often uses noun + definite ending.

More examples:

• bok = book
• boka / boken = the book
• hus = house
• huset = the house

I usually means in.

So i hagen means in the garden.

That is the natural choice here because the idea is that the children are located within that space. English also says in the garden, so this part matches quite well.

A learner may wonder about på, since Norwegian sometimes uses prepositions differently from English. But with hage, i hagen is the normal expression for in the garden.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Norwegian does not use a separate tense exactly like the English present progressive in most ordinary sentences. The simple present leker can express:

• a general fact or habit: The children play in the garden
• something happening right now: The children are playing in the garden

If you really want to emphasize that something is happening right now, Norwegian can use expressions like:

• Barna sitter og leker i hagen.
• Barna holder på å leke i hagen.

But in everyday language, Barna leker i hagen is perfectly natural.

This is the normal Norwegian statement word order:

Barna + leker + i hagen
subject + verb + adverbial

So:

• Barna = subject
• leker = verb
• i hagen = place phrase

This is very similar to English:
The children + are playing + in the garden

If you move another part to the front, Norwegian follows the V2 rule, meaning the verb still stays in the second position:

• I hagen leker barna. = In the garden, the children are playing.

Notice that when I hagen comes first, leker still comes second, and barna moves after the verb.

A simple approximate pronunciation for an English speaker is:

BAR-na LAY-ker ee HAH-gen

A few notes:

• barna: stress on the first syllable
• leker: the first e is a long vowel, somewhat like lay in careful approximation
• i is a long ee sound
• hagen: the g is pronounced here

A rough IPA-style guide would be something like: [ˈbɑ̀ːɳɑ ˈleːkər i ˈhɑːɡən]

Exact pronunciation varies a bit by dialect, but this is close enough for standard Bokmål-based pronunciation.

Yes. Leker can also be the plural noun toys.

So depending on context:

• leker = plays / are playing (verb)
• leker = toys (noun)

But in Barna leker i hagen, it is clearly the verb, because the sentence structure is:

• subject: Barna
• verb: leker
• place phrase: i hagen

If it were the noun toys, the sentence would not make sense in the same way.

Yes. Ungene is another very common way to say the children / the kids.

So both are possible:

• Barna leker i hagen.
• Ungene leker i hagen.

The difference is mostly about tone:

• barna is a very neutral, standard word
• ungene often feels a bit more like the kids

Both are common in everyday Norwegian.