 Norethandrolone is an androgen and anabolic steroid and hence is an agonist of the androgen receptor, the biological target of androgens like testosterone and dihydrotestosterone.It has a high ratio of anabolic to androgenic activity.Analogously to the case of nandrolone and 5α-dihydronandrolone, 5α-dihydronorethandrolone, the 5α-reduced metabolite of norethandrolone, shows diminished affinity for the androgen receptor relative to norethandrolone.