Stóllinn er þungur.

The chair is heavy.

Breakdown of Stóllinn er þungur.

• vera: to be
• stóllinn: the chair
• þungur: heavy

Questions & Answers about Stóllinn er þungur.

Where is the word the in this sentence? Why don’t I see a separate article?

Icelandic doesn’t use a standalone word for “the.” Instead, it attaches a definite‐article suffix to the noun. Here, stóll (“chair”) + -inn (masculine singular nominative definite ending) = stóllinn, “the chair.”

What exactly is the -inn in stóllinn, and does it change for other genders or cases?

-inn is the ending that marks masculine singular nouns as definite in the nominative case. Other common forms include: • Feminine singular nominative: -in (bók → bókin, “the book”)
• Neuter singular nominative: -ið (barn → barnið, “the child”)
• Plural nominative for all genders: -arnir / -urnar / -in (stólar → stólarnir, “the chairs”)

Why doesn’t the adjective þungur get a suffix to agree with the definiteness of stóllinn?

Adjectives used predicatively (after er, “is”) never take the definite‐article suffix. They simply agree in gender, number and case with the noun: • Here þungur is masculine singular nominative (matching stóllinn), but it remains in its “strong” form (no suffix) because it’s a predicate.

Why is it þungur and not þung or þungt?

Icelandic adjectives have three basic nominative forms to agree with the noun’s gender: • Masculine: þungur
• Feminine: þung
• Neuter: þungt
Since stóllinn is masculine singular, we use þungur.

How do you pronounce the sounds in stóllinn er þungur?

• stóllinn: “stóll” has a long ó like English “oh,” double ll is pronounced [tl] or [dl] in standard Icelandic, so roughly [STOAT-lin].
• er: pronounced [ɛr] (like “air” without the “ay”).
• þungur: þ is [θ] as in English “thin”; u is like “u” in “full”; final -ur sounds roughly like [ʏr] → [THUHG-ur].

How do I turn this statement into a question (“Is the chair heavy?”)?

Icelandic main‐clause questions invert the verb and the subject. So: Er stóllinn þungur?
(Verb er comes first, then stóllinn, then þungur.)

How would I say “A chair is heavy” with an indefinite meaning?

Leave off the definite suffix and use the bare noun. Icelandic has no separate word for “a”: Stóll er þungur.
Literal: “Chair is heavy,” i.e. “A chair is heavy.”

How do I make it plural: “The chairs are heavy”?

• Change stóllinn → stólarnir (stólar, “chairs” + -arnir, definite plural).
• Change þungur → þungir (masculine plural nominative strong form).
So: Stólarnir eru þungir.