Staðurinn er fullur af fólki.

The place is full of people.

Breakdown of Staðurinn er fullur af fólki.

• vera: to be
• staðurinn: the place
• fullur: full
• af: of
• fólk: the people

Questions & Answers about Staðurinn er fullur af fólki.

Why does staðurinn end in -inn?

In Icelandic, the definite article is suffixed to the noun. For masculine nouns in the nominative singular, you add -inn.

• staður = “place”
• staðurinn = “the place”

Why is the adjective fullur used here instead of fullt?

Adjectives in Icelandic must agree with the gender, number and case of the noun they describe.

• staður is a masculine noun in the nominative singular, so you need the masculine form fullur.
• fullt would be the neuter form, used with neuter nouns (e.g. hús er fullt af fólki).

What role does the preposition af play in fullur af fólki?

Here af corresponds to English “of” in the phrase “full of people.” It links the adjective fullur to what the place is filled with. In Icelandic, af always requires the dative case after it.

Why is fólki in the dative case instead of fólk or fólks?

Because the preposition af governs the dative. The noun fólk (a mass noun meaning “people”) declines as follows:

• Nominative: fólk
• Genitive: fólks
• Dative: fólki
• Accusative: fólk
  After af, you must use fólki (dative singular).

Can I say Staður er fullur af fólki to mean “A place is full of people”?

Yes. Dropping -inn makes the noun indefinite:

• Staður er fullur af fólki. = “A place is full of people.”
  Everything else stays the same, because staður remains masculine nominative.

How would I negate this sentence?

Insert ekki (not) after the verb:

• Staðurinn er ekki fullur af fólki.
  This means “The place is not full of people.”

How do I turn it into a question?

Invert verb and subject:

• Er staðurinn fullur af fólki?
  This literally asks “Is the place full of people?”

How do I say “The place was full of people” in the past tense?

Use the past form var of að vera (“to be”):

• Staðurinn var fullur af fólki.

Is there any other way to express “full of” in Icelandic?

The standard pattern is fullur af + dative. You might see intensifiers like troðfullur af (“jam-packed with”), but you always keep the af + dative structure.