Breakdown of Sófinn er mjúkur, en koddinn er enn mjúkari.
vera
to be
en
but
mjúkur
soft
sófinn
the sofa
koddinn
the pillow
enn
even
mjúkari
softer
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Questions & Answers about Sófinn er mjúkur, en koddinn er enn mjúkari.
Why are sófinn and koddinn written with –inn at the end?
In Icelandic the definite article (“the”) is not a separate word but a suffix.
- For masculine nominative singular nouns you add –inn.
- Thus sófi (sofa) → sófinn (the sofa), and kodd (pillow) → koddinn (the pillow).
Why does the adjective appear as mjúkur? Doesn’t it have to agree with the noun?
Yes—it’s agreeing in gender, number and case. Here both sófinn and koddinn are masculine singular nominative, so the adjective “soft” takes its masculine nominative singular form mjúkur.
- Feminine would be mjúk (e.g. “stúlkan er mjúk”).
- Neuter would be mjút (e.g. “barnið er mjúkt”).
- Plural would be mjúkir/mjúkar/mjúk depending on gender.
How is the comparative of mjúkur formed? Why mjúkari?
Icelandic typically forms comparatives by adding –ari to the adjective stem:
- Stem mjúk-
- –ari → mjúkari, meaning “softer.”
Does mjúkari change its ending for gender or number?
When used predicatively (after a verb like er “is”), comparatives are invariable: you always say er mjúkari, regardless of the subject’s gender or number.
What does enn mean in enn mjúkari?
Here enn means “even.” It intensifies the comparative, so koddinn er enn mjúkari = “the pillow is even softer.”
Why is en used between the clauses instead of og?
- en = but (contrast)
- og = and (addition)
So Sófinn er mjúkur, en koddinn er enn mjúkari = “The sofa is soft, but the pillow is even softer.”
Why can’t you say “meira mjúkur” for “more soft”?
In Icelandic you do not combine meira (“more”) with a simple adjective the way you might in English. Instead you form the synthetic comparative (mjúkur → mjúkari). Saying meira mjúkur sounds unidiomatic.