Avbildes

Avbildes is the present passive form of the verb avbilde (to depict or reproduce) in Norwegian Bokmål and some closely related Scandinavian varieties. It translates roughly as “is depicted” or “are depicted” and is used when describing how a subject appears in an image, artwork, map, or illustration. The form focuses on the representation rather than the creator.

Etymology and linguistic notes: the word combines av- (a prefix related to separation or completion) with bilde (image). The meaning centers on rendering or reproducing a subject as an image. In practice, avbildes is a grammatical voice used in formal or descriptive writing. The corresponding forms in other Nordic languages differ: Swedish avbildas and Danish afbildes.

Usage: avbildes commonly appears in scholarly and cataloging contexts, such as museum labels, art-historical descriptions, or cartographic captions, where the emphasis is on how something is represented rather than who depicted it. It can appear with various noun phrases and in different sentence positions, depending on the surrounding syntax.

Relation to other terms: while avbildes denotes depiction in text, related terms include “avbildning” (depiction or rendering) and “avbildad/avbildat” (depicted, depicted). These terms together form a family of expressions used to discuss representation in visual media, archives, and documentation.

Notes: avbildes is a finite verb form and does not function as a noun. It is primarily encountered in descriptive, academic, or cataloging contexts within Norwegian and closely related Scandinavian usage.