Tanta mi er snill.

to be

Breakdown of Tanta mi er snill.

• tanten: the aunt
• mi: my
• snill: kind

Questions & Answers about Tanta mi er snill.

What does Tanta mi mean, and why is the possessive mi placed after the noun?

Tanta mi translates to "my aunt" in English. In some Norwegian varieties—particularly in Nynorsk or certain dialects—the definite form of the noun is used (here tanta, instead of the Bokmål tanten), and the possessive pronoun comes after it. This postnominal possessive construction (like bilen min for "my car") is a common feature in these forms of Norwegian.

Why is the adjective snill not inflected to agree with tanta mi?

In this sentence, snill functions as a predicate adjective, following the linking verb er. In Norwegian, adjectives used in the predicate position are not inflected for gender, number, or definiteness. They remain in their base form regardless of the subject's characteristics. If it were used attributively (directly before a noun), you might see some inflection depending on the form and dialect.

Can you break down the sentence structure of Tanta mi er snill?

Certainly. The sentence follows a Subject–Verb–Predicate structure: • Subject: Tanta mi (meaning "my aunt") • Linking Verb: er (meaning "is") • Predicate Adjective: snill (meaning "kind") This structure is similar to English, where the subject is first, followed by the verb, and then a complement that describes the subject.