-e (flertal)

Plural -e

Level 2

The -e suffix is one of the three main ways to form the indefinite plural in Danish. It is primarily used for a specific group of one-syllable nouns and nouns ending in -er (like professions).

How It Works

The -e plural ending is typically applied in two main scenarios:

1. Monosyllabic Nouns: Many common one-syllable nouns take -e. This includes both common gender (en hund → hunde) and neuter gender (et hus → huse) words.

2. Nouns ending in -er: Most nouns describing professions or nationalities ending in -er take -e in the plural. The final 'r' is kept, and you simply add 'e'.
Example: en lærer (a teacher) → lærere (teachers).

Spelling Rule (Consonant Doubling):
When you add a suffix starting with a vowel (like -e) to a word ending in a single consonant preceded by a short, stressed vowel, that consonant is often doubled; learn the spelling with the noun.
Example: en kat (a cat) → katte (cats).

Syncopation (Vowel Loss):
Nouns ending in unstressed -el, -en, or -er (that are not professions) often drop the 'e' in the stem when adding a plural ending. For an -e plural, en fader → fædre (a father → fathers) illustrates both stem-vowel loss and vowel change. Compare en cykel → cykler (a bicycle → bicycles), which has similar stem-vowel loss but belongs to the separate -er plural class.

Definite Form:
Start from the plural form and add -ne:
• hunde + ne → hundene; do not add a second plural e.
• In the lærer type, the plural e disappears before -ne: lærere → lærerne (forming the -erne sound).

Learn the plural class: Many short neuter nouns have no plural ending: et år → to år, et dyr → to dyr. Neither shortness nor gender alone predicts -e. A few -e plurals also change the stem vowel: broder → brødre and fader → fædre. These are lexical forms to learn; do not extend their vowel change to ordinary hund/hunde.

Examples (5)

  1. Der er mange hunde i parken.

    There are many dogs in the park.

    Word by Word: There are many dogs in park-the.

    'Hund' is a one-syllable common gender noun that takes the -e ending.

  2. Vi har to store huse.

    We have two big houses.

    Word by Word: We have two big houses.

    'Hus' is a one-syllable neuter noun that takes the -e ending.

  3. Alle mine lærere er søde.

    All my teachers are sweet.

    Word by Word: All my teachers are sweet.

    Nouns ending in -er (like 'lærer') add -e to form the plural. Note that in the definite form, they become 'lærerne'.

  4. Jeg kan se tre katte.

    I can see three cats.

    Word by Word: I can see three cats.

    Note the double 't' in 'katte' because the 'a' in 'kat' is a short vowel.

  5. Der står to borde i stuen.

    There are two tables in the living room.

    Word by Word: There stand two tables in living room-the.

    'Bord' (table) is another common one-syllable noun that takes the -e ending.

Common Mistakes

  • Using -er for all one-syllable nouns.

    Jeg har to hunder.
    Jeg har to hunde.

    Learners often overgeneralize the -er ending because it is the most common. However, many core one-syllable nouns like 'hund' must use -e.

  • Forgetting to double the consonant.

    Vi har to hate.
    Vi har to hatte.

    In Danish, a single consonant after a short vowel usually doubles when a suffix starting with a vowel (like -e) is added.

  • Adding -e to neuter nouns that take the zero plural.

    Barnet er fem åre gammelt.
    Barnet er fem år gammelt.

    Some one-syllable neuter nouns take no ending at all in the plural. 'År' (year) is a common example of a 'zero plural' noun.

How It Connects

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-e (flertal)Level 2Plural -e

Learn This First

To understand how to form the plural with -e, you first need to be familiar with basic Danish nouns and their indefinite articles (en/et). It is also helpful to have encountered the most common plural ending (-er) to understand that pluralization in Danish involves adding specific suffixes to the root word.

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-e