Choosing Among hver, hvor, allir, báðir, sérhver | Icelandic Grammar

English makes do with a small handful of words — all, each, every, both — and leaves a lot to context. Icelandic draws sharper lines, and choosing the right quantifier means answering two questions the English words never force you to ask: Are you treating the group as a whole or one member at a time? and How many are there — two, or more than two? Get those two answers and the choice among allir, hver, hvor, báðir, sérhver, and annar hver almost makes itself. This page is a decision guide, not a paradigm dump — for the full case tables of each word, follow the linked pages. Here we sort out which word, and why.

The two axes

Every choice on this page turns on two independent distinctions.

Axis 1 — collective vs distributive. Do you mean the group all together as one body, or each member separately? Allir ("all") views the group collectively: allir nemendur = "all the students (as a class)." Hver ("each") views it distributively: hver nemandi = "each student (one by one)." English "all" and "each" carry the same split, but Icelandic enforces it more consistently — and crucially, hver takes a singular noun and verb (each student, one at a time), while allir takes a plural.

Axis 2 — many vs two. This is the axis English doesn't have. Icelandic systematically distinguishes a group of more than two from a group of exactly two. For "more than two" you use hver and allir. For "exactly two" you switch to the dual forms hvor ("each of two") and báðir ("both"). This dual sensitivity runs through the whole quantifier system, and it is the single most important thing on this page for an English speaker.

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Two questions decide everything: (1) Whole or one-by-one? → allir (whole, plural) vs hver (each, singular). (2) Two, or more than two? → if exactly two, switch to the dual series hvor / báðir. English collapses both distinctions; Icelandic keeps them.

allir vs hver: the whole vs each one

Allir ("all") and hver ("each") both quantify a group of more than two, but from opposite viewpoints. Allir gathers them up — plural noun, plural verb. Hver singles them out — singular noun, singular verb. The grammatical tell is the number: if the noun and verb are plural, you want allir; if singular, you want hver.

Allir nemendur tóku prófið á sama tíma.

All the students took the exam at the same time. — 'allir' + plural noun 'nemendur' + plural verb 'tóku': the group as a whole.

Hver nemandi tók prófið á sínum hraða.

Each student took the exam at their own pace. — 'hver' + singular noun 'nemandi' + singular verb 'tók': one student at a time.

Allir komu, en hver kom með sína eigin sögu.

Everyone came, but each one came with their own story. — the contrast in one line: 'allir' (collective, plural) vs 'hver' (distributive, singular).

The choice is meaningful, not stylistic. Allir fengu sömu spurningu ("everyone got the same question") describes a single shared event; hver fékk sína spurningu ("each got their own question") describes a different question per person. When you want to stress "individually, one by one," reach for hver and put the noun in the singular.

hver vs hvor: each-of-many vs each-of-two

This is the famous trap. hver = "each / which" out of many (three or more); hvor = "each / which" out of exactly two. They look almost identical and an English speaker, having only "each," will use hver for everything — including pairs, where Icelandic insists on hvor. If there are two of something (two hands, two parents, two options, two teams), it's hvor, not hver.

Hver þeirra á að halda kynningu á morgun.

Each of them is to give a presentation tomorrow. — there are several people, so 'hver' (each of many).

Hvor þeirra á að halda kynningu — þú eða Anna?

Which of you two is to give the presentation — you or Anna? — exactly two people, so 'hvor', not 'hver'.

Hún var með hring á hvorri hendi.

She had a ring on each hand. — two hands, so the dual 'hvor' (here dative feminine 'hvorri'). 'Hver hönd' would be wrong: there are only two.

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Count to two. If the set has exactly two members — two hands, two parents, two candidates, two days — use hvor, never hver. Hver is for three or more. This "is it a pair?" check is the reflex English speakers most need to build. (Full paradigms and more cases live on the dedicated hver vs hvor page.)

báðir vs allir: both vs all

The same two-vs-many split governs "both" and "all." báðir = "both," used only for exactly two. allir = "all," used for three or more. English keeps "both" vs "all" too, so this one is intuitive — the catch is just remembering that báðir is the two-member partner of hvor, exactly as allir is the many-member partner of hver. Báðir agrees in gender (báðir masc., báðar fem., bæði neut.) and always takes a plural.

Báðir strákarnir komust í liðið.

Both boys made the team. — exactly two, so 'báðir' (masculine, agreeing with 'strákarnir').

Allir strákarnir komust í liðið.

All the boys made the team. — three or more, so 'allir'.

Bæði börnin sofnuðu í bílnum.

Both children fell asleep in the car. — two children, neuter, so 'bæði' (neuter plural of 'báðir').

So the system is a tidy 2×2: for many you have allir (collective) and hver (distributive); for two you have báðir (collective) and hvor (distributive). Picking the right cell is just answering the two axis-questions.

sérhver: each and every

sérhver intensifies hver — it's "each and every (single) one," underscoring that no individual is left out. Use it when you want the emphatic, exhaustive "every single," especially in formal or rhetorical contexts (formal/literary). Like hver, it takes a singular noun and verb.

Sérhver borgari á rétt á heilbrigðisþjónustu.

Each and every citizen has the right to healthcare. — 'sérhver' + singular 'borgari': emphatic, exhaustive 'every single'. A formal register.

Hann mundi sérhvert smáatriði úr ferðinni.

He remembered every single detail of the trip. — 'sérhvert' (neuter singular) stressing total coverage, detail by detail.

In everyday speech you'd often just say hver; sérhver adds emphasis and weight, the way English "each and every" is heavier than plain "each."

annar hver: every other

annar hver is the alternation quantifier — "every other / every second." It's built from annar ("second, other") + hver ("each"), and both parts inflect: annar hver dagur (nom.), annan hvern dag (acc., the usual time-expression form). It means one-out-of-every-two in a sequence.

Ég fer í ræktina annan hvern dag.

I go to the gym every other day. — 'annan hvern dag' (accusative time phrase); both 'annan' and 'hvern' inflect together.

Þau hittast aðra hverja viku.

They meet every other week. — feminine 'vika', so 'aðra hverja viku'; the construction agrees in gender and case throughout.

The decision table

You mean…	Group size	Word	Noun number	Example
all, as a whole	3+	allir	plural	allir nemendur
each, one by one	3+	hver	singular	hver nemandi
each and every (emphatic)	3+	sérhver	singular	sérhver borgari
both, together	exactly 2	báðir	plural	báðir strákarnir
each / which of two	exactly 2	hvor	singular	hvor strákurinn
every other	in a sequence	annar hver	singular	annan hvern dag

Why English speakers stumble here

English has no dual. It gives you "each," "every," "all," and "both," but it doesn't grammatically care whether a set has two members or two hundred — "each of them" works for two or twenty. Icelandic does care, and it cares consistently: the whole quantifier system splits into a two-series (hvor, báðir) and a many-series (hver, allir). The error this produces is utterly predictable — English speakers reach for hver and allir everywhere, including pairs, and a native ear immediately hears hver hendi ("each hand," wrong) where it expects hvor hönd. The fix is a single new habit: before you pick a quantifier, count the set. Two? Use the dual. More? Use the plural. Layer the collective-vs-distributive question on top of that (whole group, or one at a time?) and you've covered every word on this page.

Common Mistakes

❌ Hver þeirra tveggja á að byrja?

Number error — there are only two ('þeirra tveggja'), so use the dual 'hvor', not 'hver'.

✅ Hvor þeirra á að byrja?

Which of the two is to start? — 'hvor' for a set of exactly two.

The signature mistake: hver for a pair. Two members always means hvor.

❌ Allir nemandi fékk sína einkunn.

Mismatch — 'allir' is collective and needs a PLURAL noun/verb; with a singular distributive noun use 'hver'.

✅ Hver nemandi fékk sína einkunn.

Each student got their own grade. — distributive 'hver' + singular noun + singular verb.

If you mean "each, individually," you need hver with a singular noun — not allir, which gathers the group into a plural.

❌ Allir foreldrar mínir komu á sýninguna.

Number error — you have exactly two parents, so 'both' is 'báðir', not 'allir' ('all').

✅ Báðir foreldrar mínir komu á sýninguna.

Both my parents came to the show. — exactly two → 'báðir'.

❌ Ég fer í sund hver annan dag.

Construction error — 'every other day' is the fixed 'annan hvern dag' (both words inflected), not 'hver annan dag'.

✅ Ég fer í sund annan hvern dag.

I go swimming every other day. — 'annan hvern dag'.

Key Takeaways

Two questions decide the quantifier: whole or one-by-one? (collective allir / báðir vs distributive hver / hvor) and two or more than two? (dual series vs plural series).
Many (3+): allir (all, collective, plural) and hver (each, distributive, singular); sérhver is the emphatic "each and every."
Two: báðir (both, collective, plural) and hvor (each/which of two, distributive, singular).
The biggest English-speaker error is using hver/allir for a pair — exactly two members always takes the dual hvor / báðir.
hver and sérhver take a singular noun and verb (one member at a time); allir and báðir take a plural.
annar hver = "every other," with both parts inflecting: annan hvern dag.

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