Learn Hardcore Norwegian: Dagen er forskjellig fra natten. - The day is different from the night.

In Norwegian, generic statements often use the definite form of nouns to talk about the concept in general. So you say dagen (the day) and natten (the night) to mean “day” and “night” in a general sense. If you said en dag and en natt, it would refer to one specific day and one specific night, not the general idea.

Why is the preposition fra used instead of enn when making this comparison?

With the adjective forskjellig (different), Norwegian uses fra (from) to link the two things: forskjellig fra. The word enn is reserved for standard comparative forms like større enn (“bigger than”) or bedre enn (“better than”). Since forskjellig isn’t a comparative adjective but rather “different,” you say forskjellig fra.

Does the adjective forskjellig change form for gender, number or definiteness?

When an adjective is used predicatively (i.e. after a verb like er), it stays in its base form and is not inflected. So regardless of whether the noun is masculine, feminine, plural or definite, you still say er forskjellig.

How do you pronounce forskjellig fra natten?

A close approximation is [for-SHELL-ig fra NAHT-en]. Key points:
• skj in forskjellig is /ʃ/ (like “sh” in English “she”).
• Double ll signals a long /lː/.
• a in fra is /ɑː/.
• In natten, the a is short /a/ and tt is /tː/.

What are the grammatical genders of dag and natt?

In Bokmål, dag is masculine (“en dag”) and natt is feminine (“ei natt”). In their definite forms both take the –en ending: dagen and natten, since both are common gender.

Could I say Dag og natt er ulike or Dag og natt er forskjellige instead?

Yes. When you join dag og natt as a compound subject, it becomes plural, so the adjective must be plural too: ulike (from ulik) or forskjellige (plural of forskjellig). Both sentences mean “Day and night are different.”

What’s the difference between ulike, forskjellige and annerledes?

• Ulik/ulike: “unlike” or “different,” used both attributively and predicatively (e.g. de er ulike).
• Forskjellig/forskjellige: “different” or “various,” often with fra when comparing (e.g. forskjellig fra).
• Annerledes: “different” in the sense of “not as expected” or “strange,” used predicatively (e.g. han er annerledes = “he is different/odd”).

How else could I express “The day is different from the night” in Norwegian?

Here are two common alternatives:
• Dagen skiller seg fra natten. (“The day distinguishes itself from the night.”)
• Det er forskjell på dag og natt. (“There is a difference between day and night.”)