Fotgjengeren går over gaten.

The pedestrian crosses the street.

Breakdown of Fotgjengeren går over gaten.

• gaten: the street
• fotgjengeren: the pedestrian
• gå over: to cross

Questions & Answers about Fotgjengeren går over gaten.

Why is there no separate word for the English “the” in fotgjengeren, and why is -en attached to the noun?

In Norwegian Bokmål the definite article is a suffix on the noun rather than a separate word. Common-gender nouns add -en in the singular definite form. So fotgjenger (“a pedestrian”) becomes fotgjengeren (“the pedestrian”).

What are the indefinite singular and plural forms of fotgjenger and gate?

• Indefinite singular: en fotgjenger (a pedestrian), en gate (a street)
• Indefinite plural: fotgjengere (pedestrians), gater (streets)
• Definite plural: fotgjengerne (the pedestrians), gatene (the streets)

Shouldn’t the definite form of gate be gata instead of gaten?

In Bokmål many feminine nouns have two options:
• Feminine-only: ei gate → gata
• Common gender: en gate → gaten
Your example uses the common-gender variant gaten, but gata is also correct.

What is the literal composition of fotgjenger, and how do compound nouns work in Norwegian?

Fotgjenger is a compound of fot (“foot”) + gjenger (“one who walks”). In Norwegian you simply join the words together, and the right-most element (gjenger) determines the core meaning and gender.

Why is over used here, and does gå over mean “to cross”? Could I use krysse instead?

Here gå over literally means “walk over/across,” so fotgjengeren går over gaten = “the pedestrian walks across the street.” You can also say fotgjengeren krysser gaten using krysse (“to cross”).

How do I conjugate å gå, and why does it change to går in this sentence?

Å gå is irregular. Its forms are:
• Infinitive: gå
• Present: går
• Past: gikk
• Perfect participle: har gått
In your sentence you need the present tense, so you use går.

How do you pronounce fotgjengeren går over gaten?

Approximate IPA (Bokmål): [ˈfʊtˌjæŋərən ˈɡoːr ˈuːvər ˈɡɑːtnə]
Rough English-style: “FOOT-yeng-er-en gor OH-ver GAH-ten.”

If I want to add an adjective, how do I form “the old pedestrian”?

When you add an adjective in a definite noun phrase, you use the separate determiner den + adjective in its definite form + noun with its suffix. For example:
den gamle fotgjengeren
(“the old pedestrian”)

How would I say “A pedestrian walks across a street” (indefinite)?

Use the indefinite articles on both nouns:
En fotgjenger går over en gate.