gefa ("to give") is one of the first strong verbs you cannot avoid: you give someone a present, you give an answer, you give yourself a moment. It is also the verb that teaches you the most important fact about Icelandic syntax at A1 — that the recipient of a gift goes in the dative and the thing given goes in the accusative. Learn gefa and you have learned the shape of every "give"-type sentence in the language.
Conjugation
Class: strong, class 5 (ablaut e–a–á/á, present gef). The vowel changes you must respect: present singular gef, past singular gaf, past plural and stem gáfu (with a long á), supine gefið. Auxiliary: hafa — ég hef gefið "I have given."
| Principal parts | |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að gefa |
| 3sg present | gefur |
| 3sg past | gaf |
| Supine | gefið |
| Person | Present (nútíð) | Past (þátíð) |
|---|---|---|
| ég | gef | gaf |
| þú | gefur | gafst |
| hann / hún / það | gefur | gaf |
| við | gefum | gáfum |
| þið | gefið | gáfuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | gefa | gáfu |
| Person | Present subjunctive | Past subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| ég | gefi | gæfi |
| þú | gefir | gæfir |
| hann / hún / það | gefi | gæfi |
| við | gefum | gæfum |
| þið | gefið | gæfuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | gefi | gæfu |
| Non-finite & imperative | |
|---|---|
| Imperative (þú) | gef! / gefðu (with attached pronoun) |
| Imperative (þið) | gefið! |
| Supine | gefið |
| Past participle (m/f/n) | gefinn / gefin / gefið |
| Middle voice (miðmynd) | gefast (3sg gefst, past gafst) — esp. gefast upp "give up" |
The case pattern: gef + dative + accusative
This is the one thing about gefa that learners most need and competitors most often bury: the person who receives is dative, the thing given is accusative. So gefa takes two objects, and they are in two different cases. English marks neither ("I give my sister a book"), so you have to build the habit consciously.
- gefa þér (dat. "you") gjöf (acc. "a present")
- gefa barninu (dat. "the child") bók (acc. "a book")
Ég ætla að gefa þér gjöf á afmælinu þínu.
I'm going to give you a present on your birthday.
Hann gaf mér góð ráð áður en ég flutti.
He gave me good advice before I moved.
Gefðu hundinum smá vatn, hann er þyrstur.
Give the dog a little water, he's thirsty.
Everyday present: gef / gefur
In daily speech gefa shows up most in the present. Note that ég gives gef (no ending), þú/hann/hún/það give gefur, and the þið form gefið is spelled exactly like the supine — context keeps them apart.
Ég gef alltaf þjórfé á veitingastöðum.
I always give a tip at restaurants.
Gefur þú blóð? Það vantar alltaf blóðgjafa.
Do you give blood? They always need donors.
Past tense and the perfect
Amma gaf okkur peysur sem hún prjónaði sjálf.
Grandma gave us sweaters she knitted herself.
Þau gáfu mér fallega bók í jólagjöf.
They gave me a beautiful book as a Christmas present.
Ég hef aldrei gefið neinum svona dýra gjöf.
I've never given anyone such an expensive present.
Middle voice: gefast upp ("give up")
The middle voice gefast mainly survives in the phrasal verb gefast upp "to give up, to surrender." It is intransitive — there is no object — and it is what you say when you quit something.
Ég ætla ekki að gefast upp, þetta er bara byrjunin.
I'm not going to give up — this is only the beginning.
Hún gafst upp á íslenskunni eftir mánuð, en byrjaði aftur.
She gave up on Icelandic after a month, but started again.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ég gefur þér bókina.
Incorrect — with ég the form is gef, not gefur.
✅ Ég gef þér bókina.
I'm giving you the book.
❌ Ég gef þig gjöf.
Incorrect — the recipient is dative (þér), not accusative (þig).
✅ Ég gef þér gjöf.
I'm giving you a present.
❌ Við gafum þeim peninga.
Incorrect — the past plural has a long á: gáfum.
✅ Við gáfum þeim peninga.
We gave them money.
❌ Ég gef upp.
Incorrect — 'give up' is the middle voice gefast upp.
✅ Ég gefst upp.
I give up.
Key Takeaways
- gefa / gef / gaf / gefið — strong class 5; mind the long á in gáfum, gáfuð, gáfu.
- The recipient is dative, the thing given is accusative: gef þér (dat.) gjöf (acc.).
- Present: ég gef but þú/hann gefur; the þið present gefið looks just like the supine.
- The imperative attaches the pronoun: gefðu ("give!").
- "Give up" is the middle voice gefast upp (ég gefst upp), not gef upp.
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Start learning Icelandic→Related Topics
- gefa (to give)A2 — Full conjugation of the strong Class-5 verb gefa (gef / gaf / gáfu / gefið), its ditransitive dative-then-accusative syntax (gefa einhverjum eitthvað), the idiom gefa sér 'allow oneself (time)', and the middle voice gefast upp 'give up'.
- The Present Tense: First VerbsA1 — Your survival kit of present-tense verbs — vera, tala, eiga, koma, fara — with the core endings -∅/-r/-r and the single most freeing A1 fact: the present already means both 'I speak' and 'I am speaking', so there is no progressive to hunt for.