Learn to read Norwegian
A short, active path into reading Norwegian: three extra letters and the silent ones, nine real words decoded before any grammar, why the verb sits second in a statement, how “the” hides on the end of the noun, and two short fables before your first book.
Start here
1 sectionStart here: what this path does
- Thirteen steps in the main path, plus three reference sections you open only when something blocks you.
- You decode nine real Norwegian words in step three, before any grammar.
- At a checkpoint you attempt the Norwegian first: the pronunciation and the English stay hidden until you reveal them.
- It ends with a fable whose help begins concealed, and then a real book.
This is short preparation for reading a book, not a grammar course: how Norwegian spelling turns into sound, where the pieces of a sentence sit, and enough recurring words for a first page. Four characters run through it — Mina the mouse, Tobi the rabbit, Tika the bird, Dara the fox — the cast of the fables this path hands you at the end.
the fox
reven
RAY-ven
The large text is the spelling, “RAY-ven” the pronunciation guide, the English the meaning. At checkpoints the last two stay hidden until you reveal them.
The three kinds of word this path talks about
| We call it | It is | For example |
|---|---|---|
| a naming word | a thing, a place | hushuus“house” |
| a doing word | what happens | erair“is” |
| a describing word | what a thing is like | storstoor“big” |
How to use a checkpoint
Try the Norwegian aloud, then reveal.
- hus
The u is “oo” with the lips pushed tight forward.
Show answer +Hide answer −
hushuus“house”