Norse

American  

[nawrs] / nɔrs /

adjective

1. of or relating to ancient Scandinavia, its inhabitants, or their language.

2. Norwegian.

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noun

• Norses
  plural

1. (used with a plural verb) the Norwegians, especially the ancient Norwegians.

2. (used with a plural verb) the Northmen or ancient Scandinavians generally.

3. the Norwegian language, especially in its older forms.

Norse British  

/ nɔːs /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of ancient and medieval Scandinavia or its inhabitants

2. of, relating to, or characteristic of Norway

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noun

1. 1. the N group of Germanic languages, spoken in Scandinavia; Scandinavian

   2. any one of these languages, esp in their ancient or medieval forms See also Proto-Norse Old Norse

2. (functioning as plural)

   1. the Norwegians

   2. the Vikings

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• non-Norse
  adjective
• pre-Norse
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Norses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Norse

1590–1600; perhaps < Dutch noorsch, obsolete variant of noordsch (now noords ), equivalent to noord north + -sch -ish ¹. Compare Norwegian, Swedish, Danish Norsk Norwegian, Norse

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Norse Norses

Here we see the real history butting up against the expected fantasy of Norse legends, warriors and gods.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026

And Norse soccer god Erling Haaland has transformed Norway into a surprise contender.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026

Separately, "Strike Norse" embedding a photo of England's Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham, previewing "Lions ready to roar past Norway into the semis" of the World Cup.

From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026

In April, Norse Atlantic Airways canceled all of its summer flights out of LAX to Europe, including destinations like London, Paris and Rome.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026

As a result, ships built and manned in Spain itself were able to sail to the West Indies; there was nothing equivalent to the Greenland bottleneck that had throttled Norse colonization.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

At that time, all the noble men of Norway tooke wives of the noble nation of the Britaines, whereupon the151 Norses say that they are descended of the race and blood of this kingdome.

From The World's Greatest Books — Volume 19 — Travel and Adventure by Sir John Alexander Hammerton

At that time all the noble men of Norway tooke wiues of the noble nation of the Britaines, whereupon the Norses say, that they are descended of the race and blood of this kingdome.

From The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 01 by Richard Hakluyt