Breakdown of Glósurnar þínar eru skýrar og hjálpa mér að læra.
vera
to be
og
and
hjálpa
to help
mér
me
þinn
your
skýr
clear
glósa
the note
læra
to learn
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Questions & Answers about Glósurnar þínar eru skýrar og hjálpa mér að læra.
What case and number is glósurnar in, and why does it end with –urnar?
glósurnar is the definite plural nominative of the feminine noun glósur “notes.” In Icelandic, the definite article is a suffix. For feminine plurals the article ending is –urnar (glósur → glósurnar = “the notes”).
Why is the possessive pronoun þínar placed after glósurnar, and why does it end in –ar?
When you modify a definite noun with a possessive pronoun, Icelandic normally puts that pronoun after the noun. þínar is the strong form of þinn “your” (singular, informal), and it agrees with glósurnar in gender (feminine) and number (plural), hence the ending –ar.
Could I say þínar glósur instead of glósurnar þínar?
Yes, but that changes the definiteness:
- þínar glósur = “your notes” (indefinite)
- glósurnar þínar = “your notes” (definite, i.e. specific notes already known to speaker and listener)
You cannot say þínar glósurnar, because that would double up the definite article (“your the notes”), which Icelandic disallows.
Why is the verb eru used here instead of er?
vera “to be” has different forms depending on the number of the subject. glósurnar þínar is plural, so you must use eru (present‐tense plural). er would be the singular form.
Why is the adjective skýrar not just skýr?
Adjectives in Icelandic agree with the noun’s gender, number, and case. Since glósurnar þínar is feminine plural nominative, the adjective skýr takes the nominative feminine plural ending, which is –ar, giving skýrar.
Why does hjálpa take mér instead of mig?
The verb hjálpa “to help” governs the dative case in Icelandic. Whoever is being helped must be in the dative, so “help me” is hjálpa mér, not hjálpa mig.
What is the role of að before læra?
að is the infinitive marker in Icelandic (equivalent to English “to”). Any bare infinitive verb must be preceded by að, so að læra means “to learn.”
In the phrase og hjálpa mér að læra, why does hjálpa come before mér and að læra?
After a coordinating conjunction like og “and,” Icelandic keeps the finite verb in second position. The dative object mér follows the verb, and then the infinitival complement að læra completes the clause.