Abstract The concept of Normative Power Europe (NPE) has become very popular for analysing the foreign policy and external relations of the European Union (EU). There is, however, confusion about what normative power actually means, which is why the debate over whether the EU actually is or is not a normative power has not always been as fruitful as it could be. This article proposes two necessary starting points for more constructive discussion: a distinction between normative and normal, and a distinction between power as a powerful actor and power as ability to cause effects. Furthermore, the article distinguishes between normative identity, normative interests, normative behaviour, normative means of power and normative outcomes as separate features of a normative power. There are also at least four different mechanisms through which normative power is exercised: by persuasion, by invoking norms, by shaping the discourse and by leading through example. The article concludes that normative power is best seen as an ideal type – one which the EU approximates more closely than other great powers.