Både tastaturet og musen fungerer uten kabler.

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Breakdown of Både tastaturet og musen fungerer uten kabler.

• uten: without
• både: both
• tastaturet: the keyboard

Questions & Answers about Både tastaturet og musen fungerer uten kabler.

What does både ... og mean and how is it used in this sentence?

både ... og is the equivalent of English “both ... and ...”. In Både tastaturet og musen the word både introduces the first element (tastaturet), og introduces the second (musen). You can use this pair to connect nouns, adjectives, adverbs or even clauses. No comma is needed between the two coordinated elements.

Why are tastaturet and musen in their definite forms?

In Norwegian you form the definite singular by adding -et for neuter nouns (tastatur → tastaturet) and -en for masculine/feminine nouns (mus → musen). Definite forms mark that you’re talking about specific, known objects—in this case the particular keyboard and the particular mouse.

Could this sentence use the indefinite forms et tastatur og en mus instead?

You would use indefinite forms when introducing something for the first time or speaking in general:
• Jeg kjøpte et tastatur og en mus. (“I bought a keyboard and a mouse.”)
In Både tastaturet og musen fungerer uten kabler we’re referring to known devices, so the definite forms are appropriate.

Why is kabler plural and without an article after uten?