The Conditional with myndi ('would')

Of all the Icelandic verb forms, myndi + infinitive is the one that maps most cleanly onto a single English word: "would." Ég myndi fara is "I would go," hann myndi hjálpa is "he would help" — auxiliary plus bare infinitive, in the same slot English puts would. That tidy correspondence makes myndi feel safe, and it is the reason learners reach for it constantly. The catch is that native Icelandic is far more economical: where you instinctively build myndi + infinitive, an Icelander very often just uses a bare past subjunctive (ég færi, not ég myndi fara), and with a handful of common "be / have / know / can" verbs the bare subjunctive is not merely preferred but required (væri, not *myndi vera). This page is about myndi itself — what it is, where it shines, and where to leave it alone. (For the full machinery of ef-sentences and the three conditional types, see Subjunctive in Conditionals; for how to build the subjunctive forms, see Subjunctive Forms.)

What myndi actually is

myndi is the past subjunctive of the modal munu ("will"). Just as English "would" is historically the past of "will," Icelandic myndi is the past-subjunctive shadow of munu — and it has drifted into a dedicated conditional auxiliary meaning "would." It takes a bare infinitive (no að): myndi fara, myndi segja, myndi kaupa.

It inflects for person and number, but only lightly — like all preterite-present modals, the singular barely changes:

You will also see the spelling mundi / mundir / mundu — an older and still fully acceptable variant of the same auxiliary. myndi is the more common modern spelling; both are correct, and you should recognise mundi in reading.

Where myndi shines: the apodosis of a counterfactual

The natural home of myndi is the result clause (apodosis) of a counterfactual conditional — the "would" half of "if I had time, I would help you." The ef-clause sets up a hypothesis contrary to fact (past subjunctive), and myndi + infinitive delivers the consequence.

Note the word order: when the ef-clause comes first, it fills the sentence's first slot, so the result clause is verb-second — myndi ég, not \ég myndi*. The auxiliary leads, the subject follows.

Where myndi shines: the polite / detached hypothetical

The second place myndi earns its keep is the standalone polite or hypothetical statement — softening an opinion, a recommendation, or a suggestion the way English "I would say…" / "I would recommend…" does. Here there is no ef-clause at all; myndi simply takes the edge off a bald assertion.

The bare past subjunctive: often the crisper choice

Here is the insight that separates textbook Icelandic from native Icelandic. English has exactly one way to express the conditional — "would" + verb — so English speakers assume Icelandic must always wheel out myndi + infinitive. It doesn't. Very often the bare past subjunctive does the whole job by itself: ég kæmi already means "I would come," ég færi means "I would go," ég segði means "I would say." The past subjunctive form is the conditional; no auxiliary is needed.

With common, high-frequency verbs the bare subjunctive sounds tighter and more native, and leaning on myndi for every single "would" is a recognisable learner tell. myndi is never wrong here — but reach for the bare form first and you'll sound more Icelandic.

The stative rule: 'would be' is væri, never *myndi vera

The bare subjunctive isn't just preferred in one important class of verbs — it is effectively obligatory. With the stative verbs vera ("be"), eiga ("have / ought"), vita ("know"), and geta ("can / be able"), Icelandic uses the bare past subjunctive (væri, ætti, vissi, gæti) and does not combine myndi with them. "Would be" is væri, not *myndi vera; "would have" is ætti, not *myndi eiga; "would know" is vissi; "would be able to" is gæti.

English vs Icelandic: one 'would', three Icelandic strategies

English collapses the whole conditional into a single auxiliary: "would" + verb, full stop. There is no choice to make. Icelandic instead distributes the job across three strategies, and choosing the right one is most of the skill:

1. Bare past subjunctive — the default for common verbs, especially obligatory for the statives: ég kæmi, það væri, ég gæti.
2. myndi + infinitive — the periphrastic "would," idiomatic in counterfactual result clauses and softened opinions: ég myndi mæla með því.
3. (And, for the future-as-prediction "will," the separate modal munu — það mun rigna — covered on the munu/skulu/ætla page. Don't confuse predictive mun with conditional myndi.)

The English-speaker's instinct is to map "would" → myndi every time, which is grammatical but flat and slightly foreign. The native instinct runs the other way: use the bare subjunctive by default, and switch to myndi when it genuinely reads better (a heavy verb, a long clause) or when softening an opinion. And never pair myndi with the statives.

Common Mistakes

The single most common myndi mistake. vera takes the bare past subjunctive væri for "would be." *myndi vera is not idiomatic Icelandic.

geta likewise rejects myndi. Use gæti + supine for "would be able to."

A textbook tell. The bare past subjunctives kæmi … gæti are far tighter and more native than stacking myndi twice.

When the ef-clause comes first it occupies slot one, so the auxiliary comes second: myndi ég, not ég myndi.

Don't confuse the conditional myndi ("would") with predictive mun ("will"). A weather forecast is a neutral prediction → mun rigna, not myndi/mundi rigna.

Key Takeaways

• myndi (myndi / myndir / myndi / myndum / mynduð / myndu; also spelled mundi) is the past subjunctive of munu, used as the conditional auxiliary "would." It takes a bare infinitive: ég myndi fara.
• Its idiomatic homes are the result clause of an ef-counterfactual (ef…, myndi ég…) and the softened opinion/recommendation (ég myndi segja / mæla með…).
• Very often a bare past subjunctive is crisper and more native than myndi
  • infinitive: ég kæmi over ég myndi koma. Try the bare form first.
• With the statives vera, eiga, vita, geta, the bare subjunctive (væri, ætti, vissi, gæti) is required: "would be" is væri, never *myndi vera.
• When the ef-clause is first, the result clause inverts (V2): myndi ég….
• Keep conditional myndi ("would") apart from predictive mun ("will," forecasts).