Irregular adjectives
Irregular adjectives with unpredictable forms: liten/lita/lite/små, annen/annet/andre, gammel/gammelt/gamle.
Use irregular adjectives liten, annen and gammel correctly across genders and numbers.
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Vi har et lite barn og to små barn.
We have a small child and two small children.
Jeg bor i et gammelt hus.
I live in an old house.
Kan jeg ha en annen kaffe?
Can I have another coffee?
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
Irregular adjectives
Some adjectives do not follow standard patterns and must be memorized.
| Adjective | Masc. | Fem. | Neut. | Plural/Def. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| small | liten | lita | lite | små |
| other/another | annen | anna | annet | andre |
| old | gammel | gammel | gammelt | gamle |
'liten barn' is wrong — neuter needs 'lite barn'. Plural of 'gammel' is 'gamle', not 'gammele'.
Common Error Patterns
Using wrong form of an irregular adjective (e.g., 'liten' instead of 'lite' with neuter noun).
Using 'gammele' instead of 'gamle' in plural/definite forms.
Vi har et lite barn og to små barn.
We have a small child and two small children.
'lite' for neuter singular, 'små' for plural — suppletive forms.
Jeg bor i et gammelt hus.
I live in an old house.
'gammel' + neuter -t → 'gammelt'. Plural/definite → 'gamle'.
Kan jeg ha en annen kaffe?
Can I have another coffee?
'annen' for masculine singular; neuter = 'annet', plural = 'andre'.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises