nota ("to use") is one of the most-typed verbs in the language — it lives in every sentence about tools, apps, words, money, and time. It is a textbook weak Class-1 verb (the -aði preterite), so its endings are completely regular. But it hides one feature that trips up learners who have just mastered tala: because its stem vowel is o, not a, it does not take u-umlaut. The "we" form is notum, never nötum. This page gives the full paradigm, the accusative object pattern, and the handy middle voice notast við.
Conjugation
Class: weak, Class 1 (the -aði preterite). Auxiliary: hafa — ég hef notað "I have used."
| Principal parts | |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að nota |
| 3sg present | notar |
| 3sg past | notaði |
| Supine | notað |
| Person | Present (nútíð) | Past (þátíð) |
|---|---|---|
| ég | nota | notaði |
| þú | notar | notaðir |
| hann / hún / það | notar | notaði |
| við | notum | notuðum |
| þið | notið | notuðuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | nota | notuðu |
| Person | Present subjunctive | Past subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| ég | noti | notaði |
| þú | notir | notaðir |
| hann / hún / það | noti | notaði |
| við | notum | notuðum |
| þið | notið | notuðuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | noti | notuðu |
| Non-finite & imperative | |
|---|---|
| Imperative (þú) | notaðu |
| Imperative (þið) | notið! |
| Supine | notað |
| Past participle (m/f/n) | notaður / notuð / notað |
| Middle voice (miðmynd) | notast (við) — "to make do with, get by on" |
Why there is no umlaut here
U-umlaut — the reflex that turns a into ö before a -u- ending — only targets the vowel a. It is a rule about a specifically, not a general "the plural changes the vowel" rule. Since nota's stem vowel is o, there is simply nothing for the umlaut to act on, and the o sails through every ending unchanged: notum, notuð, notuðum, notuðu. English has no comparable spelling reflex, so the temptation for learners is the opposite one — they often forget umlaut belongs to a alone and start sprinkling ö onto any plural. nota is the verb that teaches you the rule's real boundary.
Ég nota strætó á hverjum degi.
I use the bus every day.
Við notum bara appið til að borga.
We just use the app to pay.
Hvaða orð notaðir þú? Ég heyrði ekki.
Which word did you use? I didn't hear.
nota + accusative — "use something"
The plain transitive nota takes a direct object in the accusative: nota eitthvað ("use something"). This matches English word-for-word, so the only thing to watch is the case ending on the noun, not the structure.
Má ég nota símann þinn í smá stund?
Can I use your phone for a moment?
Hún notaði rangan lykil og opnaði ekki.
She used the wrong key and didn't get it open.
notast við — "make do with / get by on"
The middle-voice form notast við (+ accusative) means "make do with, get by on, manage with" — using something that is good enough rather than ideal. This is one of those everyday phrases that no word-for-word translation predicts; you simply have to know it.
Við notuðumst við gamla tjaldið í sumar.
We made do with the old tent this summer.
Það er ekki fullkomið en ég get notast við það.
It's not perfect, but I can make do with it.
The noun: notkun
The related noun is notkun (f.) "use, usage" — í notkun "in use," til einkanota "for personal use." You will meet it on packaging and in instructions constantly, so it is worth pairing with the verb from day one.
Þetta orð er ekki lengur í almennri notkun.
This word is no longer in common use.
Common Mistakes
❌ Við nötum sama lykilorð fyrir allt.
Incorrect — nota has an o-stem, so there is no u-umlaut; the form is notum, never nötum
✅ Við notum sama lykilorð fyrir allt.
We use the same password for everything.
❌ Þau nötuðu kortið mitt.
Incorrect — the past plural is notuðu (o-stem, no umlaut), not nötuðu
✅ Þau notuðu kortið mitt.
They used my card.
❌ Ég noti tölvuna alla daga.
Incorrect — this is the subjunctive form; the everyday present 'I use' is nota
✅ Ég nota tölvuna alla daga.
I use the computer every day.
❌ Hún er búin að nota af gamla símanum.
Incorrect — 'make do with' is the middle voice notast við, not nota af
✅ Hún er búin að notast við gamla símann.
She has been making do with the old phone.
Key Takeaways
- nota / notar / notaði / notað — a fully regular weak Class-1 verb; past tense in -aði.
- No u-umlaut: the stem vowel is o, and only short a umlauts — so it is notum, notuðum, never nötum.
- nota + accusative = "use something" (nota símann).
- notast við
- accusative (middle voice) = "make do with, get by on."
- Auxiliary is hafa: ég hef notað. Related noun: notkun "use, usage."
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- The Weak Preterite: -aði, -di, -ði, -tiA2 — How to choose and form the weak past tense — Class-1 -a verbs take -aði (tala → talaði, plural töluðum), Class-2 verbs take the short dental -di/-ði/-ti picked by the preceding sound (reyndi, dæmdi, keypti) — with the full tala paradigm and the 'when in doubt, -aði' default for unknown verbs.