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Kassinn er undir stólnum.

Kassinn er undir stólnum.
The box is under the chair.

Breakdown of Kassinn er undir stólnum.

vera
to be
stóllinn
the chair
undir
under
kassinn
the box
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Questions & Answers about Kassinn er undir stólnum.

Why is there no separate word for “the” in kassinn? How is the definite article expressed?

In Icelandic the definite article is not a separate word but a suffix attached to the noun. For the masculine strong noun kassi (“box”):

  • Indefinite nominative singular: kassi (“a box”)
  • Definite nominative singular: kassinn = kassi
    • -inn (“the box”)
What case is stólnum in, and how can I recognize it?

Stólnum is the dative definite singular of stóll (“chair”). You can spot dative definite masculine singular by the ending -num on the noun stem. In this case:

  • Stem: stól-
  • Dative definite ending: -num
    Resulting in stólnum
Why is the preposition undir followed by a dative noun here? Could it ever take another case?

Undir is one of Icelandic’s “two‐way” prepositions.

  • When indicating location (static position), it takes the dative: undir stólnum = “under the chair.”
  • When indicating direction (movement toward), it takes the accusative: e.g. setja kassann undir stólinn = “to put the box under the chair.”
How do I decline kassi in the singular, both indefinite and definite?

Singular declension of kassi (strong masculine):
• Nominative: kassi / kassinn
• Genitive: kassa / kassans
• Dative: kassa / kassanum
• Accusative: kassa / kassann

Can you show the singular declension of stóll, especially how stólnum fits in?

Singular declension of stóll (strong masculine):
• Nominative: stóll / stólinn
• Genitive: stóls / stólsins
• Dative: stól / stólnum
• Accusative: stól / stólinn

Is the word order in Kassinn er undir stólnum the only option? What if I want to emphasize location?

Basic Icelandic word order is Subject–Verb–Adverbial (SVO). Here: Kassinn (S) er (V) undir stólnum (Adv).
To emphasize the place, you can front the adverbial but keep the verb in second place:
• Undir stólnum er kassinn. = “Under the chair, the box is.” (i.e. “The box is under the chair.”)

How do I pronounce Kassinn er undir stólnum, and where do I put the stress?

Pronunciation tips:
• Kassinn → [ˈkasːɪn] (stress on KAS-)
• er → [ɛr]
• undir → [ˈʏn.tɪr] (stress on UN)
• stólnum → [ˈstoʊːl.nʏm] (stress on STÓL)
Overall stress pattern: KAS-sinn ER UN-dir STÓL-num (primary stress on the first syllable of each content word).