Kostholdet er viktig.

The diet is important.

Breakdown of Kostholdet er viktig.

• være: to be
• viktig: important
• kostholdet: the diet

Questions & Answers about Kostholdet er viktig.

Why is the word kostholdet used here instead of just kosthold?

In Norwegian, you don’t put a separate word for “the” in front of a noun. Instead you add a suffix. Kosthold is a neuter noun meaning “diet,” and adding -et makes it definite: kostholdet = “the diet.”

When would you use et kosthold instead?

You use et kosthold (literally “a diet”) when you talk about any diet, not “the diet” in general. For example:
• Jeg har et sunt kosthold. – “I have a healthy diet.”
Here you’re introducing your diet as one instance among many.

Could you say Kosthold er viktig without the -et?

Technically, yes, a headline or a very brief slogan might drop the article: Kosthold er viktig. But in normal speech or writing, Norwegians use the definite form kostholdet when talking about diet as a general concept.

Why isn’t there an article before viktig (like “a” or “an”)?

Viktig is a predicate adjective following the verb er (“is”). In Norwegian, you never put an indefinite article before an adjective that comes after er. You simply say er viktig (“is important”).

Does viktig change form based on gender or number of the subject?

No. When an adjective is used predicatively (after er, blir, etc.), it remains in its base form regardless of gender or number. So you’d also say Bøkene er viktig (“The books are important”), Spørsmålet er viktig (“The question is important”), and so on.

How would you say “A healthy diet is important” in Norwegian?

You’d say Et sunt kosthold er viktig.
Here et is the neuter indefinite article, sunt is the neuter form of sunn (“healthy”), and you keep viktig unchanged after er.

What’s the difference between Kostholdet er viktig and Er kostholdet viktig?

It’s all about word order:
• Kostholdet er viktig. – statement (Subject–Verb–Predicate)
• Er kostholdet viktig? – question (Verb–Subject–Predicate)

In Norwegian yes/no questions you invert the verb and the subject.