Bókin er áhugaverð.

The book is interesting.

Breakdown of Bókin er áhugaverð.

• vera: to be
• bókin: the book
• áhugaverður: interesting

Questions & Answers about Bókin er áhugaverð.

Why doesn’t the sentence have a separate word for the, and what does the -in on Bókin indicate?

Icelandic marks definiteness with a suffix rather than a separate article. Bókin is made of the stem bók (book) + -in, the definite singular feminine ending. So Bókin literally means “the book” in one word.

What case and gender is Bókin in, and why?

Bókin is feminine singular nominative. It’s the subject of the verb er (“is”), so it takes the nominative case. Since bók is a feminine noun and we’re talking about a single book, it’s singular feminine.

What is er, and how is the verb vera conjugated in the present tense?

Er is the 3rd person singular present of vera (to be). The present-tense forms are:
• ég er (I am)
• þú ert (you are)
• hann/hún/það er (he/she/it is)
• við erum (we are)
• þið eruð (you pl. are)
• þeir/þær/þau eru (they are)

Why does áhugaverð end in -ð, and how does it agree with Bókin?

Áhugaverð is an adjective meaning “interesting.” In predicative position (after er), adjectives use the strong declension and must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun. Since Bókin is feminine singular nominative, the adjective takes the corresponding ending -ð: áhugaverð.

How would you turn “The book is interesting.” into a yes/no question?

Invert the verb and subject:
Er bókin áhugaverð?
You keep the same words but swap er and bókin, then add a question mark.

How do you say “an interesting book” in Icelandic when the adjective comes before the noun?

Attributive adjectives in the indefinite form also use the strong declension. Feminine singular nominative is unchanged from the predicative form:
áhugaverð bók

How do you say “the interesting book” attributively (adjective before noun)?

For a definite noun with an attributive adjective, both take the weak (definite) endings. Feminine singular nominative gets -a on the adjective and -ina on the noun:
áhugverða bókina