Breakdown of Foreldrene passer på barna om kvelden.
barnet
the child
kvelden
the evening
om
in
forelderen
the parent
Questions & Answers about Foreldrene passer på barna om kvelden.
What does Foreldrene mean, and what is the function of the -ne ending?
Foreldrene means “the parents”.
- The base word is foreldre = parents (indefinite plural).
- The ending -ne is the definite plural ending: foreldre + ne → foreldrene = the parents.
So:
- foreldre = parents
- foreldrene = the parents
Norwegian usually adds the definite ending onto the noun instead of using a separate word like English the (though it can also use a separate article in some cases, but not here).
How would I say “a parent / the parent / parents / the parents” in Norwegian?
Using forelder / foreldre:
- en forelder = a parent
- forelderen = the parent
- foreldre = parents
- foreldrene = the parents
Note that foreldre is the normal word for parents. The singular forelder exists but is used less often in everyday speech than the plural forms; people often say mamma, pappa, mor, far, etc. for a single parent.
What does passer på mean here, and is it one verb or two words?