enkelt

Enkelt is a lexeme found in the Nordic languages Norwegian, Danish and Swedish, with related meanings across these languages. As an adjective it most commonly means simple, not complicated, or easy. In addition, it can function as an adverb meaning simply or plainly when describing how something is presented. In many contexts the word also carries a sense of single or one, especially in compounds.

In Norwegian, enkelt is used to describe things that are straightforward or easy to understand. It also appears in compounds indicating a single item, such as enkeltrom (a room for one person) and, in broader usage, in phrases that refer to a single unit or individual. In Danish, the word serves a similar role as an adjective meaning easy or uncomplicated, and it forms compounds such as enkeltbillet to denote a single or one-way ticket. In Swedish, enkelt similarly conveys simplicity or ease, and is used in comparable compound formations with a sense of single units in some contexts.

Etymology traces enkelt back to Proto-Germanic roots related to the idea of one or single, a family resemblance that explains its cross-language similarity in signaling singularity as well as simplicity.

Usage notes: the word spans several grammatical functions—adjective, adverb, and in compounds a marker of single units. While meanings overlap across Norwegian, Danish and Swedish, exact collocations and usage patterns vary by language.

See also: simple, easy, one, single, compound words in Nordic languages.