vinna is a two-for-one verb: it means both "to work" and "to win" — and it is a strong Class-3 verb, one of the irregular workhorses you simply have to learn by heart. Its principal parts follow the classic i–a–u ablaut pattern (vinn / vann / unnu / unnið), and its past plural does something startling: the v disappears entirely. This page lays out the full paradigm, separates the "work" sense from the "win" sense (which differ in case), and covers vinna að ("work on") and vinna sér inn ("earn").
Conjugation
Class: strong, Class 3 (ablaut i → a → u: vinn / vann / unnu). Auxiliary: hafa — ég hef unnið "I have worked / won." Note that the supine and participle are unnið, not "vinnið."
| Principal parts (the four you memorise) | |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að vinna |
| 1sg present | vinn |
| 1/3sg past | vann |
| 3pl past | unnu |
| Supine | unnið |
| Person | Present (nútíð) | Past (þátíð) |
|---|---|---|
| ég | vinn | vann |
| þú | vinnur | vannst |
| hann / hún / það | vinnur | vann |
| við | vinnum | unnum |
| þið | vinnið | unnuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | vinna | unnu |
| Person | Present subjunctive | Past subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| ég | vinni | ynni |
| þú | vinnir | ynnir |
| hann / hún / það | vinni | ynni |
| við | vinnum | ynnum |
| þið | vinnið | ynnuð |
| þeir / þær / þau | vinni | ynnu |
| Non-finite & imperative | |
|---|---|
| Imperative (þú) | vinndu! (clitic form) / vinn! |
| Imperative (þið) | vinnið! |
| Supine | unnið |
| Past participle (m/f/n) | unninn / unnin / unnið |
| Middle voice (miðmynd) | vinnast — "to get done," þetta vinnst "it can be done" |
No u-umlaut to worry about here
Learners trained on tala → tölum sometimes try to umlaut vinna too. There is nothing to do: the stem vowel is i (and u in the past plural), neither of which umlauts. unnum, unnuð, unnu already contain u and are simply spelled as they sound. Switch the u-umlaut reflex off for this verb entirely.
Ég vinn á spítala.
I work at a hospital.
Hvar vannstu áður en þú komst hingað?
Where did you work before you came here?
Þau unnu öll í sömu verksmiðju.
They all worked in the same factory.
Two senses, two cases: "work" vs "win"
This is the distinction competitors gloss over. As "work," vinna is intransitive — it takes no object, only adverbs and prepositional phrases (vinna hér, vinna mikið). As "win," it is transitive and takes the accusative: vinna leikinn "win the match," vinna verðlaun "win a prize." Same verb form, completely different syntax — the presence of an accusative object is what tells a listener you mean "win."
Ísland vann leikinn 2–1.
Iceland won the match 2–1.
Hún vann fyrstu verðlaun í keppninni.
She won first prize in the competition.
vinna að + dative — "work on / toward"
To say you are working on a project or toward a goal, use vinna að + dative: vinna að verkefni "work on a project," vinna að friði "work toward peace." The preposition að always takes the dative, so the noun shifts accordingly.
Við erum að vinna að nýju verkefni.
We're working on a new project.
Hann hefur unnið að þessari rannsókn í mörg ár.
He has worked on this research for many years.
Why does the same verb cover "work" and "win"? Both descend from an older sense of exerting effort and gaining a result — you win a prize by working for it. The grammar keeps the two readings apart so cleanly (object vs no object) that native speakers never feel any ambiguity, even though the dictionary lists them as one verb. When you hear hann vann with no object and no sports context, default to "he worked"; the moment an accusative or a match-name appears, it flips to "won."
Earning: vinna sér inn
A high-frequency idiom for "earn (money)" is vinna sér inn, with the reflexive dative sér: hún vinnur sér inn góð laun "she earns a good salary."
Ég vinn mér inn aukapening með því að kenna.
I earn extra money by teaching.
Common Mistakes
❌ Þau vunnum allan daginn.
Incorrect — the past plural drops the v: unnum, not 'vunnum'
✅ Þau unnu allan daginn.
They worked all day.
❌ Ég vann í gær.
Incorrect only if you mean 'I won' with no object — bare vinna means 'work'; add the accusative object to mean 'win'
✅ Ég vann leikinn í gær.
I won the match yesterday.
❌ Ég vinnaði á skrifstofu.
Incorrect — vinna is strong, not weak; you can't add the -aði ending. The past is vann
✅ Ég vann á skrifstofu.
I worked in an office.
❌ Við vinnum að verkefnið.
Incorrect — the preposition að takes the dative, so it's verkefninu
✅ Við vinnum að verkefninu.
We're working on the project.
Key Takeaways
- vinn / vann / unnu / unnið — strong Class-3 (i–a–u ablaut); perfect takes hafa: ég hef unnið.
- The v disappears in the past plural and supine: unnum / unnuð / unnu / unnið — the single most-missed point.
- "Work" is intransitive; "win" takes the accusative (vinna leikinn, vinna þá "beat them").
- vinna að
- dative = "work on/toward."
- Past subjunctive is ynni (with i-umlaut) — used in conditionals: ef ég ynni þar… "if I worked there…"
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- ganga (to walk / go / work)A2 — Full conjugation of the strong verb ganga (geng / gekk / gengu / gengið), the u-umlaut in göngum, the 'function/go well' sense (það gengur vel), the quirky dative-subject mér gengur vel ('I'm doing well'), and idioms like ganga frá.