Questions & Answers about Ég á sex penna.
What does á mean in this sentence?
In this context, á is the 1st-person singular present of the verb að eiga, which means to own or to possess. So Ég á sex penna literally translates as “I own six pens,” even though in English we usually just say “I have six pens.” Here á is not the preposition on.
Why is the noun penna and not pennar?
The verb á takes a direct object in the accusative case. At the same time, when you count more than four items, Icelandic uses the genitive plural form of the noun. For penni (a weak masculine noun) the accusative plural form is penna—and coincidentally the genitive plural is also penna. The nominative plural would be pennar, but we don’t use that here.
Why is there no article before sex penna?
Icelandic does not have a separate indefinite article like English a or an. Indefinite nouns simply appear without an article. If you wanted to emphasize “one pen,” you would use the numeral einn. Otherwise, you leave it bare: Ég á hund (“I have a dog”), Ég á sex penna (“I have six pens”).
Does sex change form if the noun is feminine or masculine, or in different cases?
No. Cardinal numbers (5) and above are invariable in Icelandic. That means stays regardless of the gender or case of the noun it’s counting. Only change to agree in gender, number (2–4), and case.