Súpan er köld.

to be

Breakdown of Súpan er köld.

• súpan: the soup
• köld: cold

Questions & Answers about Súpan er köld.

What is the lemma (dictionary form) of súpan, and how is definiteness marked in Icelandic?

The lemma is súpa (“soup”). Icelandic marks the definite article by adding a suffix to the noun. Here, -n is attached to súpa, giving súpan = “the soup.”

What case, number and gender is súpan in?

Súpan is in the nominative case (because it’s the subject), singular number, and feminine gender. The -n ending also tells you it’s definite.

Why does the adjective kaldur change to köld in this sentence?

Adjectives in Icelandic must agree with their nouns in gender, number and case. Here:
• kaldur is the masculine lemma “cold.”
• As a predicate adjective describing a feminine noun (súpa), it takes the feminine nominative singular form: köld.
• The vowel change a → ö is due to a regular historical sound change (i-umlaut) in the feminine form.

Why isn’t köld marked for definiteness with an extra ending?

Predicate adjectives (those linked by er “is”) use one simple form that agrees in gender/number/case but do not carry a separate definite ending. Only attributive adjectives (those placed directly before a noun) have both a “strong” (indefinite) and “weak” (definite) inflection.

How would you say “the cold soup” as an attributive phrase (adjective + noun)?

When an adjective comes before a definite noun, it takes the weak (definite) form. So kaldur → kalda (weak fem. sg.), giving:
kalda súpan = “the cold soup.”

How do you form the question “Is the soup cold?” in Icelandic?

Icelandic is a V2 language, so the finite verb comes first in a yes/no question. You get:
Er súpan köld?

How do you say “The soup is not cold”?

Place ekki (“not”) before the adjective:
Súpan er ekki köld.

How would you express “The soup was cold” (past tense)?

Replace the present tense er with the past tense var (preterite of vera “to be”):
Súpan var köld.

Why does the verb er appear in second position in Súpan er köld?

In main clauses Icelandic follows the V2 (verb-second) rule. One constituent (here súpan) may come first, but the finite verb (er) must then be in the second slot.

How do you pronounce Súpan er köld?

Approximate IPA: [ˈsuːpan ɛr ˈkœlt]
• ú = long [uː]
• ö = [œ] (as in French œu)
• Final d in köld voices-devoices to [t].