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Questions & Answers about Maturinn er góður.
What does maturinn mean, and why does it have the suffix -inn attached?
The word matur means food in English. The ending -inn is the definite article in Icelandic, which is attached directly to the noun. This makes maturinn translate to the food, indicating a specific instance of food rather than food in general.
Why is the adjective góður written in its current form even though it describes a definite noun?
In Icelandic, adjectives used in a predicate position (after a linking verb like er, which means is) retain their strong form. When adjectives directly modify a noun before it, they follow a weak inflection pattern that matches the noun’s definite or indefinite status. Since góður follows the verb and works as a predicate adjective, it does not take a special ending even though it describes maturinn.
What is the grammatical structure or word order of Maturinn er góður?
The sentence follows a subject-verb-predicate structure. Maturinn is the subject, er is the linking verb meaning is, and góður functions as the predicate adjective describing the subject. This structure is very similar to English sentences like The food is good.
What are the gender, number, and case of maturinn, and how does this affect agreement with adjectives?
Maturinn is a masculine singular noun in the nominative case, as it is the subject of the sentence. When adjectives modify nouns directly (in an attributive position), they must agree in gender, number, and case. In the predicate position, however, the adjective góður remains in its basic strong form, but if it were placed before the noun, its form might change to match the noun’s attributes more explicitly.
How would the sentence change if you wanted to express a general statement about food rather than referring to a specific instance?
If you wanted to talk about food in general rather than a specific the food, you would remove the definite article suffix. The sentence would become Matur er góður, which can be translated as Food is good. This subtle difference shows how Icelandic uses suffixes to indicate definiteness.