blása ("to blow") belongs to strong Class 7, the old reduplicating class — the same family as falla, halda, láta and gráta. Class 7 does not ablaut to a brand-new vowel the way Classes 1–6 do; instead the stem vowel returns unchanged in the supine (blásið) while the preterite is marked by a long é (blés, blésu). The one twist blása adds is in the present: the á of the infinitive fronts by i-umlaut to æ, so "blows" is blæs, not blás. That single fact — present blæs, infinitive blása — is what trips up almost every learner, and it is exactly what this page drills. Along the way it covers the constructions blása á (blow on something), blása til (call a meeting or a strike), and the indispensable weather use það blæs ("it's windy").
Conjugation
Class: strong, Class 7 (reduplicating), series á – é – é – á, with i-umlaut á → æ in the present singular. Auxiliary: hafa — ég hef blásið "I have blown." The long é runs right through the preterite (singular and plural alike); the supine and participle restore the infinitive's á (blásið, blásinn).
| Principal parts | |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að blása |
| 1sg present | blæs |
| 1sg past | blés |
| 3pl past | blésu |
| Supine | blásið |
| Person | Present (nútíð) | Past (þátíð) |
|---|---|---|
| ég | blæs | blés |
| þú | blæst | blést |
| hann / hún / það | blæs | blés |
| við | blásum | blésum |
| þið | blásið | blésuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | blása | blésu |
| Person | Present subjunctive | Past subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| ég | blási | blési |
| þú | blásir | blésir |
| hann / hún / það | blási | blési |
| við | blásum | blésum |
| þið | blásið | blésuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | blási | blésu |
| Non-finite & imperative | |
|---|---|
| Imperative (þú) | blástu / blás þú |
| Imperative (þið) | blásið! |
| Supine | blásið |
| Past participle (m/f/n) | blásinn / blásin / blásið |
| Present participle | blásandi |
The present i-umlaut: blæs, not blás
In Classes 1–6 the present keeps the infinitive's vowel; in much of Class 7 it does too. But the verbs whose stem vowel is á show a present-tense i-umlaut that fronts á → æ in the singular. So blása gives ég blæs, þú blæst, hann blæs, and only the plural restores the á (við blásum, þið blásið, þau blása). This is not random: the same fronting governs láta → læt and gráta → græt (and historically reflects a lost -i- in the old present ending). Treat blæs as the headline form — it is the one you will reach for constantly to talk about wind.
Það blæs hressilega hérna á Reykjanesi í dag.
It's blowing a real gale here on the Reykjanes peninsula today. — impersonal weather 'það blæs'; present singular with i-umlaut 'blæs'.
Vindurinn blæs beint í fangið á okkur.
The wind is blowing straight in our faces. — 'vindurinn blæs', present singular æ.
The é-preterite: blés / blésu
Like every Class-7 verb, blása marks the past with a long é — and crucially the plural keeps the same é as the singular (blés → blésu), unlike Class 1, where the plural drops to a short vowel (beit → bitu). The supine then drops the é and restores the infinitive's á: blásið. Drill the chant blása – blés – blésu – blásið and the whole verb is in your pocket.
Hann blés í lúðurinn og leikurinn hófst.
He blew the horn and the game began. — preterite singular 'blés' (long é).
Norðanvindarnir blésu látlaust alla helgina.
The northerly winds blew nonstop all weekend. — preterite plural 'blésu', keeping the é (not a short-vowel plural).
blása á — "blow on" (+ accusative)
In its plain transitive use blása takes á + accusative for the thing you blow on or at — blása á kertin "blow on the candles," blása á heitt kaffi "blow on hot coffee." The motion-onto sense of á is why it is accusative, not dative.
Blástu á súpuna, hún er sjóðheit.
Blow on the soup, it's piping hot. — imperative 'blástu' + á + accusative (súpuna).
Barnið blés á kertin og allir klöppuðu.
The child blew out the candles and everyone clapped. — preterite 'blés' + á + accusative.
blása til — "call (a meeting, a strike)" and other idioms
A high-register but very common figurative use is blása til + genitive: to "sound the call for" something, i.e. to convene or launch it — blása til fundar "call a meeting," blása til verkfalls "call a strike," blása til sóknar "launch an offensive/campaign." The metaphor is the bugle-call. Also worth knowing: blása upp "inflate / blow up" (a balloon, a tyre, and figuratively a story in the media), and the participle blásinn "blown / inflated / windswept."
Verkalýðsfélagið blés til verkfalls eftir að samningar fóru út um þúfur.
The trade union called a strike after negotiations collapsed. — 'blása til' + genitive (verkfalls); preterite 'blés'. (formal/journalistic)
Fjölmiðlar blésu málið upp úr öllu valdi.
The media blew the matter completely out of proportion. — 'blása upp' = inflate/blow up; preterite plural 'blésu'.
Common Mistakes
❌ Vindurinn blásir mikið í dag.
Incorrect on two counts — blása is strong, not a weak -ir verb, and the present singular has i-umlaut: it's 'blæs', not '*blásir'.
✅ Vindurinn blæs mikið í dag.
The wind is blowing hard today.
The number-one error is the present: learners regularise the stem to blás- and add a weak ending. The strong present singular is the i-umlauted blæs.
❌ Hann blásaði á kertin.
Incorrect — blása is strong Class 7, not weak; there is no '-aði'. The past is 'blés'.
✅ Hann blés á kertin.
He blew on the candles.
Regularising to a weak -aði past is the classic strong-verb slip. The preterite is the long-é blés.
❌ Vindarnir blestu allan daginn.
Incorrect — the past PLURAL keeps the long é: 'blésu', not a short-vowel '*blestu'.
✅ Vindarnir blésu allan daginn.
The winds blew all day long.
Class 7 has no short-vowel past plural; blésu keeps the same é as the singular blés.
❌ Ég hef blést í blöðruna.
Incorrect — the supine restores the stem á: 'blásið', not '*blést'. The é belongs to the preterite only.
✅ Ég hef blásið í blöðruna.
I've blown up the balloon.
The supine drops the preterite é and returns to á: blásið. Auxiliary is hafa (ég hef blásið), never vera.
Key Takeaways
- blása is strong Class 7 (reduplicating), series á – é – é – á: blæs (pres. sg., i-umlauted), blés / blésu (past sg./pl.), blásið (supine), blásinn (participle).
- The headline form is the i-umlauted present singular blæs (with æ) — the plural restores the á (við blásum), exactly like láta → læt and gráta → græt.
- The preterite carries a long é in both numbers (blés, blésu) — there is no short-vowel past plural.
- Key constructions: blása á
- accusative "blow on" (blása á kertin), blása til
- genitive "call/convene" (blása til fundar/verkfalls), blása upp "inflate / blow out of proportion," and the impersonal weather það blæs "it's windy."
- accusative "blow on" (blása á kertin), blása til
- Auxiliary is hafa: ég hef blásið.
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