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Vaxtagjöldin eru há.

Vaxtagjöldin eru há.
The interest expenses are high.
From Lesson 87:Completing an individual tax return·Hardcore Icelandic

Breakdown of Vaxtagjöldin eru há.

vera
to be
hár
high
vaxtagjöldin
the interest expenses

Questions & Answers about Vaxtagjöldin eru há.

Why is vaxtagjöldin written as one word?
Because Icelandic forms compound nouns very freely. Here vaxta- and gjöld combine into one noun, vaxtagjöld. Then the definite article is added to the end of the whole word, giving vaxtagjöldin. Writing it as one word is the normal Icelandic pattern.
Why does the first part look like vaxta- instead of vextir?
The word vextir changes form when it is used inside a compound. In vaxtagjöld, the first part comes from vaxta, a genitive plural form related to vextir. Icelandic often uses a genitive form in compounds, so the structure is roughly charges of interest.
What does the ending -in mean in vaxtagjöldin?

It is the definite article, attached to the noun as a suffix. So:

  • vaxtagjöld = interest charges / interest expenses
  • vaxtagjöldin = the interest charges / the interest expenses

This is very common in Icelandic: instead of a separate word like English the, Icelandic often adds the article to the end of the noun.

Is vaxtagjöldin singular or plural?
It is plural. The main noun here is gjöld, which is a plural form. That is why the verb is also plural: eru rather than er.
Why is the verb eru and not er?

Because eru is the 3rd person plural form of vera, to be. Since vaxtagjöldin is plural, the verb has to be plural too.

  • er = is
  • eru = are

So Vaxtagjöldin eru há matches English The interest charges are high.

What case is vaxtagjöldin in?
It is nominative plural. In this sentence, vaxtagjöldin is the subject, and subjects are normally in the nominative. The adjective há is also nominative, because it is a predicate adjective after vera.
Why is the adjective há?

Because Icelandic adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number. Vaxtagjöldin is neuter plural, so the adjective hár has to appear in its neuter plural form, which is há.

A few forms of hár are:

  • masculine singular: hár
  • feminine singular: há
  • neuter singular: hátt
  • neuter plural: há

So há is exactly the form that agrees with vaxtagjöldin.

Why isn’t the adjective definite too?

In Icelandic, predicate adjectives after vera usually do not take a separate definite ending the way the noun does. The definiteness is already shown on vaxtagjöldin, and the adjective just agrees in gender and number: há.

So Icelandic says, literally, the interest charges are high, not something like the interest charges are the-high.

Can I also say Vaxtagjöld eru há?

Yes. That would be the indefinite version: Interest charges are high or Interest expenses are high in a general sense. Adding -in makes it definite and more specific:

  • Vaxtagjöld eru há = interest charges are high
  • Vaxtagjöldin eru há = the interest charges are high
How would I turn this into a yes/no question?

You would usually move the verb to the front:

Eru vaxtagjöldin há?

That means Are the interest charges high? Verb-first word order is the normal way to make this kind of question in Icelandic.

Does há always mean high?
Not always. The adjective hár can mean high or tall, depending on what it describes. With costs, fees, prices, or rates, it means high. So in this sentence, há is naturally understood as high, not tall.
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