Bensinstasjonen har en liten butikk.

The gas station has a small store.

Breakdown of Bensinstasjonen har en liten butikk.

• ha: to have
• en: a
• liten: small
• butikken: the store

Questions & Answers about Bensinstasjonen har en liten butikk.

What does the -en at the end of bensinstasjonen signify?

In Norwegian, the definite form of a common‐gender singular noun is made by adding -en to the end. Here, bensinstasjon means “gas station,” so bensinstasjonen means “the gas station.” There’s no separate word for “the” because the article is a suffix.

How would you say “a gas station” instead of “the gas station”?

Use the indefinite article en before the noun:
en bensinstasjon = “a gas station.”
In the indefinite you keep en in front; in the definite you drop en and add -en to the noun itself.

Why is there an s between bensin and stasjon in bensinstasjon?

That s is a linking letter (called a “fuge-s”) used in many Norwegian compound words. It simply glues the two parts together and makes the compound sound natural.

Why do we say en liten butikk and not just liten butikk?

In Norwegian, singular countable nouns need an article. Butikk is a common‐gender, countable noun, so you must use the indefinite article en, giving you en liten butikk = “a small shop.” Without en, it would be ungrammatical here.