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Questions & Answers about Ég kaupi penna.
Why is there no article before penna?
Icelandic does not have an indefinite article like "a" in English. Nouns appear without an article, or they take a definite article at the end of the word. Hence, "penna" is simply "pen" without any article.
Why does "penna" end in "-a" instead of "-i"?
The base form is "penni" (nominative). However, in this sentence, it is the direct object of the verb "kaupi," so it appears in the accusative case, which changes "penni" (nominative) to "penna" (accusative).
Why do we use the verb form "kaupi"?
Icelandic has multiple verb forms depending on person and number. "Kaupi" is the first-person singular present tense form of the verb "að kaupa" ("to buy").
Does "kaupi" cover both "I buy" and "I am buying"?
Yes. Modern Icelandic does not distinguish between simple present ("I buy") and present continuous ("I am buying"). Both ideas are expressed with the same present tense form, "kaupi".
Why does "Ég" appear at the beginning of the sentence?
Icelandic tends to follow a subject-verb-object word order in statements. "Ég" (meaning "I") usually comes first (the subject), followed by the verb ("kaupi"), and then the object ("penna").