Nominalization in Norwegian

Overview

Nominalization is the process of creating nouns from verbs and adjectives. In Norwegian, this is accomplished through a set of productive suffixes — primarily "-ning," "-else," "-het," and "-skap" — that transform action words and descriptive words into abstract nouns. "Forbedre" (to improve) becomes "forbedring" (improvement), "bestemme" (to decide) becomes "beslutning" (decision), and "skjønn" (beautiful) becomes "skjønnhet" (beauty).

This is a C1-level topic because nominalization is a hallmark of formal and academic Norwegian. While everyday speech favors verbal constructions ("Vi utvikler systemet" — We are developing the system), formal writing prefers nominal ones ("Utviklingen av systemet" — The development of the system). Mastering nominalization is essential for reading and producing academic papers, government documents, business reports, and quality journalism in Norwegian.

Nominalization also creates denser, more abstract prose. A single nominalized noun phrase can compress an entire clause into a compact form. This density is valued in formal registers but can reduce clarity if overused — a tension that Norway's "klarspråk" (plain language) movement actively addresses.

How It Works

Main Suffixes

Suffix	Added To	Meaning	Examples
-ning	Verb stems	Action/result	forbedring (improvement), utvikling (development)
-else	Verb stems	Action/result/state	beslutning (decision), oppdagelse (discovery)
-het	Adjective stems	Quality/state	skjønnhet (beauty), mulighet (possibility)
-skap	Noun/adj stems	State/quality/group	vennskap (friendship), samfunn (society)
-dom	Noun/adj stems	State/condition	sykdom (illness), rikdom (wealth)

Verb-to-Noun with "-ning"

"-Ning" is the most productive nominalization suffix:

Verb	Nominalization	English
forbedre	forbedring	improvement
utvikle	utvikling	development
bearbeide	bearbeiding	processing
forklare	forklaring	explanation
beskrive	beskrivelse/beskriving	description
overraske	overraskelse	surprise
planlegge	planlegging	planning
undervise	undervisning	teaching

Verb-to-Noun with "-else"

"-Else" is also very common but less predictable. Some verbs can take either "-ning" or "-else":

Verb	Nominalization	English
bestemme	beslutning/bestemmelse	decision/determination
oppdage	oppdagelse	discovery
begynne	begynnelse	beginning
forstå	forståelse	understanding
overraske	overraskelse	surprise
handle	handling	action

Adjective-to-Noun with "-het"

"-Het" creates abstract nouns from adjectives:

Adjective	Nominalization	English
skjønn	skjønnhet	beauty
mulig	mulighet	possibility
vanskelig	vanskelighet	difficulty
sikker	sikkerhet	safety/certainty
viktig	viktighet	importance
enkel	enkelhet	simplicity
fri	frihet	freedom

Gender of Nominalized Nouns

Almost all nominalizations are masculine/feminine (en-words):

Suffix	Gender	Example
-ning	en/ei	en forbedring
-else	en/ei	en beslutning
-het	en/ei	en mulighet
-skap	et (exception!)	et vennskap
-dom	en	en sykdom

Note: "-skap" nouns are typically neuter (et-words), which is an exception to the pattern.

Verbal vs. Nominal Style

Verbal (Informal/Spoken)	Nominal (Formal/Written)	English
Vi utvikler systemet.	Utviklingen av systemet pågår.	The development of the system is underway.
De besluttet å...	Beslutningen om å...	The decision to...
Vi skal forbedre kvaliteten.	Forbedring av kvaliteten er prioritert.	Improvement of quality is prioritized.
Fordi vi forsto det...	På grunn av vår forståelse...	Due to our understanding...

Nominalization with Prepositions

Nominalized nouns typically connect to their complements using prepositions:

Preposition	Pattern	Example
av	N + av + object	utviklingen av systemet
om	N + om + topic	beslutningen om å slutte
til	N + til + purpose	tillatelse til å reise
for	N + for + beneficiary	anerkjennelse for innsatsen

Examples in Context

Norwegian	English	Note
Forbedringen av systemet tar tid.	The improvement of the system takes time.	-ning from forbedre
Beslutningen ble tatt.	The decision was made.	-ning from bestemme
Utviklingen går raskt.	The development is fast.	-ning from utvikle
Skjønnheten i naturen.	The beauty in nature.	-het from skjønn
Muligheten for endring er stor.	The possibility for change is great.	-het from mulig
Forståelsen av problemet øker.	The understanding of the problem increases.	-else from forstå
Oppdagelsen forandret alt.	The discovery changed everything.	-else from oppdage
Sikkerheten er viktig.	Safety is important.	-het from sikker
Behandlingen av søknaden pågår.	The processing of the application is underway.	-ning from behandle
Enkelheten i designet er bevisst.	The simplicity of the design is intentional.	-het from enkel
Frihetens pris er høy.	The price of freedom is high.	-het from fri, genitive
Undervsiningen starter kl. 9.	Teaching begins at 9.	-ning from undervise

Common Mistakes

Wrong: forbedrelsen Right: forbedringen Why: The correct nominalization of "forbedre" uses "-ning," not "-else." While both suffixes nominalize verbs, they are not interchangeable — each verb has a conventional suffix.

Wrong: en vennskap Right: et vennskap Why: Nouns ending in "-skap" are neuter (et-words), unlike most other nominalizations which are masculine/feminine.

Wrong: Utviklingen for systemet pågår. Right: Utviklingen av systemet pågår. Why: The preposition "av" (of) is used to connect a nominalization to its object. Using "for" changes the meaning.

Wrong: Overusing nominalization in all contexts. Right: Use nominalization in formal registers; prefer verbal constructions in casual writing and speech. Why: Excessive nominalization makes text dense and hard to read. Norway's klarspråk guidelines specifically advise against unnecessary nominalization in public documents.

Wrong: mulighetlig (adding extra suffix) Right: mulighet Why: Do not stack nominalization suffixes. "Mulig" takes "-het" to become "mulighet" — adding further suffixes creates non-words.

Usage Notes

Nominalization is overwhelmingly a feature of formal written Norwegian. Academic papers, legal documents, government communications, and business reports all rely heavily on nominalized forms. In contrast, spoken Norwegian and informal writing strongly prefer verbal constructions.

Norway's Språkrådet (Language Council) and the klarspråk movement encourage writers to "verbalize" nominalized text — that is, to convert nouns back to verbs for clarity. For example, "Gjennomføring av evaluering av tiltaket" (Implementation of evaluation of the measure) is clearer as "Vi evaluerer tiltaket" (We are evaluating the measure). C1 learners should be able to both produce and simplify nominalized prose.

There is no significant difference between Bokmål and Nynorsk in nominalization patterns, though specific vocabulary items may differ.

Practice Tips

1. Read a formal Norwegian document and identify all nominalizations. Government reports from regjeringen.no are excellent sources. For each nominalization, identify the root verb or adjective and consider how the sentence would read in verbal style.

2. Practice converting between nominal and verbal styles. Take a formal paragraph and rewrite it in plain language, then reverse the exercise. This builds bidirectional fluency between registers.

3. Create suffix charts for new verbs you learn. Whenever you learn a new verb, check whether it nominalizes with "-ning," "-else," or another suffix. Building this awareness incrementally is more effective than memorizing lists.

Related Concepts

• Parent: Formal Written Style — The formal register where nominalization is most prevalent.