Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.

The musician plays guitar in the park.

Breakdown of Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.

• i: in
• spille: to play
• gitaren: the guitar
• parken: the park
• musikeren: the musician

Questions & Answers about Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.

Why does Musikeren mean “the musician”? Where is the word “the”?

In Norwegian, the definite article (“the”) is usually added as an ending on the noun instead of being a separate word.

• musiker = a musician (indefinite)
• musikeren = the musician (definite)

The ending -en here marks masculine (or common gender) singular definite.

So:

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  = The musician plays (the) guitar in the park.

Can this sentence also mean “The musician is playing guitar in the park”, not just “plays”?

Yes. Norwegian present tense covers both English simple present and present continuous.

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  Can mean:
  • The musician plays guitar in the park (regularly / in general)
  • The musician is playing guitar in the park (right now).

Context usually tells you which meaning is intended.

If you really want to emphasize the ongoing action “is in the middle of doing it now,” you can say:

• Musikeren holder på å spille gitar i parken.
  (literally: The musician is in the process of playing guitar in the park.)

Why is there no article before gitar? Why not “en gitar” or “gitaren”?

With musical instruments, Norwegian usually drops the article after the verb spille (“to play”):

• spille gitar – play (the) guitar
• spille piano – play (the) piano
• spille fiolin – play (the) violin

So:

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  literally: The musician plays guitar in the park.

If you want to refer to a specific guitar, you can use an article:

• Musikeren spiller på en gitar han nettopp kjøpte.
  The musician is playing a guitar he just bought.
• Musikeren spiller på gitaren sin.
  The musician is playing his (own) guitar.

What is the difference between i parken and på parken? Could I say på parken?

Here you must use i parken, not på parken.

• i is generally used for in enclosed or defined spaces:
  i parken (in the park), i huset (in the house), i byen (in the city).
• på is often used for on/at surfaces or certain fixed expressions:
  på bordet (on the table), på skolen (at school), på kino (at the cinema).

So:

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken. ✅
• ✗ Musikeren spiller gitar på parken. (wrong in standard Norwegian)

But you do say:

• på skolen – at school
• på jobben – at work
• på konserten – at the concert

Why is it parken and not just park? What’s the difference?

Same idea as with musikeren:

• en park = a park (indefinite, singular)
• parken = the park (definite, singular)

So:

• Musikeren spiller gitar i en park.
  The musician plays guitar in a park. (unspecified park)
• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  The musician plays guitar in the park. (a specific park both speaker and listener know about)

What are the indefinite and definite forms of musiker and park (singular and plural)?

Here are the basic forms:

musiker (common gender)

• Singular:
  • en musiker – a musician
  • musikeren – the musician
• Plural:
  • musikere – musicians
  • musikerne – the musicians

park (masculine / common gender)

• Singular:
  • en park – a park
  • parken – the park
• Plural:
  • parker – parks
  • parkene – the parks

Example with plural:

• Musikerne spiller gitar i parkene.
  The musicians play guitar in the parks.

Could I change the word order, like “I parken spiller musikeren gitar”? Is that correct?

Yes, that is correct, and it’s natural Norwegian.

Norwegian main clauses follow the V2 rule (the verb is always in second position):

1. You can start with the subject:
   • Musikeren (1st) spiller (2nd) gitar i parken.
2. Or you can start with an adverbial (like a place):
   • I parken (1st) spiller (2nd) musikeren gitar.

Both are correct; the second one puts extra emphasis on “in the park”.

How do I make this sentence negative: “The musician does not play guitar in the park”?

You add ikke (not) after the verb:

• Musikeren spiller ikke gitar i parken.
  The musician does not play / is not playing guitar in the park.

Basic pattern in a simple statement:

• Subject – Verb – ikke – (rest of sentence)
  Musikeren – spiller – ikke – gitar i parken.

How do I turn this into a yes/no question: “Does the musician play guitar in the park?”

In Norwegian yes/no questions, you usually put the verb first, then the subject:

• Spiller musikeren gitar i parken?
  Does the musician play guitar in the park? / Is the musician playing guitar in the park?

Answers:

• Ja, musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
• Nei, musikeren spiller ikke gitar i parken.

How would I say “The young musician plays guitar in the park”?

You need an adjective and, because of the adjective, you add a separate den in front of the noun:

• Den unge musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  The young musician plays guitar in the park.

Structure:

• den (definite article) + unge (adjective, definite form) + musikeren (noun, definite form)

Can I say “Musikeren spiller på gitar” instead of “spiller gitar”?

You can see spille på gitar, but in everyday Norwegian, spille gitar (without på and without article) is more common and more neutral.

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken. ✅ (very standard)
• Musikeren spiller på gitar i parken. (also possible, can feel a bit more “literal”: is playing on a guitar)

When talking about which instrument you play in general, use the version without article and usually without på:

• Jeg spiller gitar. – I play guitar.
• Hun spiller piano. – She plays piano.

How are these words pronounced roughly for an English speaker?

Very roughly (not strict phonetics):

• Musikeren ≈ “moo-SEE-keh-ren”
  
  • stress on SI
• spiller ≈ “SPEE-ler” (short i, like in bit)
• gitar ≈ “gee-TAR” (hard g, like in go; stress on TAR)
• i ≈ “ee”
• parken ≈ “PARK-en” (like English park
  • en)

So the whole sentence:

• Musikeren spiller gitar i parken.
  ≈ “moo-SEE-keh-ren SPEE-ler gee-TAR ee PARK-en.”