Ég loka skápnum sem er fyrir ofan vaskinn.

I close the cabinet that is above the sink.

Breakdown of Ég loka skápnum sem er fyrir ofan vaskinn.

• ég: I
• vera: to be
• loka: to close
• sem: that
• skápurinn: the cabinet
• fyrir ofan: above
• vaskurinn: the sink

Questions & Answers about Ég loka skápnum sem er fyrir ofan vaskinn.

Why is skápnum in the dative case and not the nominative or accusative?

Because the verb loka governs the dative in Icelandic. Whenever you “close” something with loka, that something must be in the dative. Here, the definite dative singular of skápur (“cupboard”) is skápnum.

Does loka mean “to close” or “to lock”? In English those are different.

In Icelandic loka can cover both “close” and “lock” depending on context.

• Here it simply means “close the cupboard door.”
• If you really want “lock,” you can use lása or lása á (“fasten/lock on”), but in everyday speech loka alone is usually enough.

Why do we need sem er before fyrir ofan vaskinn? Can we drop sem or er?

Sem is the relative pronoun (“that/which”) introducing the clause, and er is the verb “is.” Together they form the relative clause describing which cupboard. You cannot drop them, because:

• Without sem er, you’d get “Ég loka skápnum fyrir ofan vaskinn,” which sounds like you’re closing the cupboard in order to do something above the sink.
• To specify “the cupboard that is above the sink,” you need the full structure sem er fyrir ofan vaskinn.

What case is vaskinn in fyrir ofan vaskinn?

The phrase fyrir ofan is a prepositional expression that takes the accusative case for its object. The definite accusative singular of vaskur (“sink”) is vaskinn, so you get fyrir ofan vaskinn (“above the sink”).

What’s the difference between fyrir ofan and yfir?

• fyrir ofan = “directly above,” emphasizing vertical position (e.g. a cupboard right above the sink).
• yfir = “over,” often used for horizontal coverage or movement across (e.g. a beam running over the table).
  In this context fyrir ofan feels more precise for a cupboard positioned immediately above the sink.

Why is the verb er in second position after sem? I thought subordinate clauses put verbs at the end.

Most subordinate clauses in Icelandic do put the verb last, but relative clauses introduced by sem are an exception: they follow main‐clause (V2) word order. That’s why er comes immediately after sem.

Could I say Ég loka skápnum sem er ofan við vaskinn instead?

Yes. ofan við is another common way to say “above” or “up above.”

• fyrir ofan vaskinn = directly above the sink (a bit more formal/precise)
• ofan við vaskinn = above the sink (everyday speech)
  Both are correct here.

Why is skápnum definite and not just skáp?

You’re referring to a specific cupboard (the one above the sink), so you use the definite form.

• Indefinite base: skápur (“a cupboard”)
• Definite nominative: skápurinn (“the cupboard”)
• Definite dative: skápnum (“to/for the cupboard”)
  The -inn ending marks it as “the” cupboard.