Liturinn á húsinu er gulur.

The color of the house is yellow.

Breakdown of Liturinn á húsinu er gulur.

• vera: to be
• húsið: the house
• á: on
• gulur: yellow
• liturinn: the color

Questions & Answers about Liturinn á húsinu er gulur.

Why does liturinn end with -inn?

Icelandic marks the definite article as a suffix. For a masculine noun in the nominative singular, the definite article is -inn. So litur (“colour”) + -inn = liturinn (“the colour”).

What case and number is húsinu, and why is it that form?

húsinu is the dative singular definite form of hús (“house”). The preposition á meaning “on” (in a static sense) governs the dative case. You form the dative singular by adding -i to the stem (húsi), then attach -nu to make it definite: húsi → húsinu.

Why is the adjective gulur not gult or guli?

Adjectives in predicative position (i.e. after er) take the strong declension and agree in gender, number, and case with the noun they describe. Here the subject liturinn is masculine nominative singular, so the strong nominative masculine ending -ur gives gulur.

• gult would be neuter nominative singular.
• guli is the weak form used when an adjective is attributive to a definite noun (e.g. guli liturinn).

Could I instead say Húsið er gult? What’s the difference?

Yes. Húsið er gult literally “The house is yellow.” That’s more direct. Liturinn á húsinu er gulur (“The colour on the house is yellow”) emphasizes the concept of “colour” as the subject, not the house itself. Both describe the house’s colour, but the focus shifts.

How do you know á takes dative here and not accusative?

In Icelandic, á governs:
• Dative when expressing a static location (“on/at”): á húsinu = “on the house.”
• Accusative when expressing movement toward something (“onto”): á húsið = “onto the house.”
Here we’re talking about the paint being on the house (static), so we use the dative.

Does the definite subject liturinn force the adjective gulur to become definite?

No. Predicative adjectives (those linked by er) always use the strong form, regardless of whether the noun is definite. They only match gender, number, and case—not definiteness.

How is the sentence structured in terms of subject and predicate?

Subject: Liturinn á húsinu (“The colour on the house”)
Verb: er (“is”)
Predicate adjective: gulur (“yellow”)
The noun phrase liturinn á húsinu is in the nominative (subject) and includes a prepositional phrase á húsinu modifying liturinn. Then er gulur completes the idea.

How would you form dative singular definite for other neuter nouns?

Take the noun stem, add -i for dative singular, and then -nu for definiteness.
Example: barn (“child”)
• Dative singular: barni
• Definite dative: barninu (“the child” as the object of a dative-governing preposition)

How is liturinn á húsinu er gulur pronounced and where is the stress?

Stress always falls on the first syllable in Icelandic. Approximate pronunciation:
• liturinn [ˈlɪːtʏrɪn]
• á [au]
• húsinu [ˈhuːsɪnʏ]
• er [ɛr]
• gulur [ˈkʏːlʏr]
Each main word carries the stress on its initial syllable.