eiga is one of the most important verbs to get straight early, because it does two jobs English splits between different words. It means "to own, to possess" (ég á bíl "I have/own a car") — and combined with að, it becomes a modal of obligation/expectation, "to be supposed to / ought to" (þú átt að fara "you're supposed to go"). It belongs to a special class, the preterite-present verbs, whose present looks like a past tense. That sounds exotic, but you already use the exact same kind of verb in English every day.
Conjugation
Class: preterite-present (its present forms descend from an old past tense, so there is no -r ending in the singular). Auxiliary: hafa — ég hef átt "I have owned."
| Principal parts | |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að eiga |
| 3sg present | á |
| 3sg past | átti |
| Supine | átt |
| Person | Present (nútíð) | Past (þátíð) |
|---|---|---|
| ég | á | átti |
| þú | átt | áttir |
| hann / hún / það | á | átti |
| við | eigum | áttum |
| þið | eigið | áttuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | eiga | áttu |
| Person | Present subjunctive | Past subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| ég | eigi | ætti |
| þú | eigir | ættir |
| hann / hún / það | eigi | ætti |
| við | eigum | ættum |
| þið | eigið | ættuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | eigi | ættu |
| Non-finite & imperative | |
|---|---|
| Imperative (þú) | áttu (rare in this sense) |
| Supine | átt |
| Past participle (m/f/n) | átt (used mainly as supine; verbal adjective rare) |
| Present participle | eigandi ("owner") |
Preterite-present: a class you already know
Preterite-present verbs are a small, ancient group whose present tense comes from an old strong past tense — which is why the present singular has no ending (á, not "ár"). English speakers have a free pass here: your modals can, may, shall, must, ought are the same class. Nobody says "he cans" or "she musts," and for the identical historical reason nobody says "hann ár." So when eiga gives you ég á, þú átt, hann á, it is behaving precisely like English I can, you can, he can.
The other Icelandic preterite-presents you will meet — kunna "know how," mega "may," munu "will," þurfa "need," vita "know," vilja "want" — all share this no-ending singular.
Sense 1: possession (eiga = own, not hafa)
eiga expresses ownership and stable possession: things you own, family you have, relationships. This is different from hafa ("have"), which is more about holding, experiencing, or serving as the perfect auxiliary. If you possess it in the sense of it's yours, use eiga.
Ég á gamlan bíl og tvö reiðhjól.
I own an old car and two bicycles.
Eigið þið börn?
Do you (pl.) have children?
Hún átti einu sinni hús í Vesturbænum.
She once owned a house in the Vesturbær district.
The thing owned goes in the accusative: ég á bíl (acc.), ég á systur (acc.) "I have a sister."
Sense 2: eiga að — "be supposed to / ought to"
Add að + an infinitive and eiga becomes a modal meaning "be supposed to, be meant to, ought to." It expresses an external expectation or arrangement — what is meant to happen — rather than a personal want.
Þú átt að vera kominn heim klukkan tíu.
You're supposed to be home by ten.
Hvað á ég að gera núna?
What am I supposed to do now?
Fundurinn átti að byrja fyrir hálftíma.
The meeting was supposed to start half an hour ago.
The past subjunctive ætti — "ought to / should"
The past subjunctive ætti is extremely common as a softened "should." Þú ættir að… is the gentle, polite way to give advice — exactly like English "you ought to / you should." Note the vowel: átti (past indicative, "owned/was supposed to") versus ætti (past subjunctive, "ought to"). One á, one æ — and the difference is meaning-critical.
Þú ættir að hvíla þig — þú lítur þreytulega út.
You ought to rest — you look tired.
Við ættum kannski að taka leigubíl.
Maybe we should take a taxi.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ég hef bíl.
Incorrect — for owning a thing, Icelandic uses eiga, not hafa
✅ Ég á bíl.
I have / own a car.
❌ Ég ár tvær systur.
Incorrect — eiga is preterite-present; the 1sg/3sg has no ending: just á
✅ Ég á tvær systur.
I have two sisters.
❌ Þú átt fara núna.
Incorrect — the obligation modal needs að before the infinitive
✅ Þú átt að fara núna.
You're supposed to go now.
❌ Þú átti að hringja í lækninn.
Incorrect — for polite 'you ought to', use the past subjunctive ættir (æ), not átti
✅ Þú ættir að hringja í lækninn.
You ought to call the doctor.
Key Takeaways
- eiga / á / átti / átt — a preterite-present verb; the present singular is the bare á (no -r), like English modals.
- Possession = eiga (own it), not hafa; the thing owned is accusative.
- eiga að
- infinitive = "be supposed to / ought to" (external expectation).
- ætti (past subjunctive) = soft "should/ought to"; don't confuse it with átti (past indicative).
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- hafa (to have)A1 — The full conjugation of Icelandic hafa, 'to have' — present hef/hefur/hefur/höfum/hafið/hafa, past hafði/hafðir/hafði/höfðum/höfðuð/höfðu, supine haft — the language's main perfect auxiliary, with the u-umlaut in höfum/höfðum.