Osten er mild.

The cheese is mild.

Breakdown of Osten er mild.

• være: to be
• mild: mild
• osten: the cheese

Questions & Answers about Osten er mild.

Why is the noun osten used here instead of en ost?

In Norwegian the definite article is attached as a suffix. ost means “cheese,” and when you want to say the cheese you add -en: ost → osten. So en ost = “a cheese,” and osten = “the cheese.”

Where is the word the in this sentence?

There is no separate word for the in Osten er mild because Norwegian marks definiteness with endings. The -en on osten already means the.

Why isn’t the adjective mild written as milde or milt?

Because mild is used predicatively (it follows the verb er). Predicative adjectives in Norwegian remain in their base form regardless of gender or number. Attributive adjectives (before a noun) change:
• en mild ost (“a mild cheese”)
• et mildt brød (“a mild bread,” neuter noun)
• den milde osten (“the mild cheese,” definite form adds -e)

What gender is ost, and how does that affect its forms?

Ost is a common-gender noun (in Bokmål often called masculine/feminine merged). Common-gender nouns take en in the indefinite singular and -en in the definite singular:
• indefinite singular: en ost
• definite singular: osten

How would you say “the mild cheese” if you wanted to put mild directly in front of osten?

You’d use a demonstrative plus the attributive adjective ending -e:
 den milde osten
Here den = “the,” milde shows attributive agreement, and osten is the definite noun.

How do you form a question to ask “Is the cheese mild?” in Norwegian?

Simply invert the verb and subject (no extra do needed):
 Er osten mild?

Can I say Osten er ganske mild to mean “The cheese is quite mild”?

Yes. You can insert adverbs like ganske (“quite”) or veldig (“very”) before the adjective:
 Osten er ganske mild.
 Osten er veldig mild.

Any tips on pronouncing osten er mild?

• osten: /ˈuːstən/ – the “o” is like in English “ooze,” and the unstressed -en is a relaxed “uhn.”
• er: /æːr/ – similar to English “air” but longer.
• mild: /mɪld/ – like English “mild,” though the Norwegian i is a bit shorter.
Putting it all together smoothly: “OO-stuhn air mild.”