Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Notatboken er billig, men pennen er dyr. - The notebook is cheap, but the pen is expensive.

notatboken is the definite singular form of notatbok (notebook). In Norwegian, the definite article (“the”) is usually attached as a suffix: for masculine nouns you add -en, for feminine -a, and for neuter -et. So notatbok (a notebook) becomes notatboken (the notebook).

How would you say “a notebook” in Norwegian?

You say en notatbok. en is the indefinite masculine article (“a”), placed before the noun in the singular.

Why aren’t there separate words like “the” before the nouns?

Unlike English, Norwegian often uses a post-positive article. Instead of saying the notepad, you attach the article to the noun itself (notatbok → notatboken). This is standard for most common nouns.

Why do the adjectives billig and dyr have no endings in this sentence?

Here billig (cheap) and dyr (expensive) are predicate adjectives following the verb er (is). In predicate position, adjectives remain uninflected—they stay in their basic form, without -e or other endings.

How would those adjectives look if they describe the noun directly (attributively)?

Attributive adjectives agree in number and definiteness. For example:

en billig notatbok (a cheap notebook)
den billige notatboken (the cheap notebook)
en dyr penn (an expensive pen)
den dyre pennen (the expensive pen)

What does men mean, and how does it affect word order?

men means “but.” It’s a coordinating conjunction, so the clause that follows keeps the normal subject–verb–object order: men pennen er dyr (but the pen is expensive).

Why is pennen also in the definite form?

penn means “pen” (masculine). Adding -en makes it definite (“the pen”). In our sentence we’re contrasting two specific items already introduced, so both are in the definite singular: notatboken and pennen.

How would you negate the second clause to say “the pen is not expensive”?

You insert ikke (not) after the verb:
Notatboken er billig, men pennen er ikke dyr.