Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Hún velur frekar salat en brauð.

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Questions & Answers about Hún velur frekar salat en brauð.

What does the adverb frekar add here? Is it required?

Frekar means “rather / preferably.” The pattern frekar X en Y expresses “X rather than Y.” Without frekar, en would normally be read as “but,” not “than,” so you need frekar (or another comparative word) to get the “rather than” meaning.

What exactly does en mean in this sentence?

Here en means “than” because it follows the comparative adverb frekar. In other contexts, en can mean “but”: e.g., Ég borða salat en ekki brauð = “I eat salad but not bread.”

What cases are salat and brauð in?

They are (understood as) accusative objects of velur (“choose”), which takes the accusative case. These nouns are neuter and look the same in nominative and accusative singular, so you don’t see a form change. With nouns that show case clearly you would see it:
• Hún velur frekar kjúkling en fisk. (accusative: kjúkling, fisk)

Why is frekar after the verb? Could it go elsewhere?

Icelandic main clauses are verb-second. A common placement for sentence adverbs like frekar is right after the finite verb: Hún velur frekar …
You can also say: Hún velur salat frekar en brauð. Both are idiomatic; the second keeps frekar close to the “en-phrase.”

Can I say heldur en instead of frekar en?

Use:
• ekki X, heldur Y = “not X, but (rather) Y” after a negation.
• With comparisons, en alone is standard (e.g., betra en), and many speakers also say betra heldur en (colloquial, acceptable).
For “rather than,” the set phrase is frekar en. Some people say frekar heldur en, but it’s redundant; stick to frekar en.

What are the key forms of the verb velja (“to choose”)?

Present: ég vel, þú velur, hann/hún/það velur, við veljum, þið veljið, þau velja
Past: ég/hún valdi, við völdum, þið völduð, þau völdu
Perfect: hún hefur valið
Example past of our sentence: Hún valdi frekar salat en brauð.

How do I say “She is choosing …” and “She chose …”?

• “She is choosing …”: Hún er að velja …
• “She chose …”: Hún valdi …
So: Hún er að velja frekar salat en brauð. / Hún valdi frekar salat en brauð.

Why is there no “a/the” before salat and brauð?

Icelandic has no indefinite article (“a”). The definite article is a suffix: salatið = “the salad,” brauðið = “the bread.” Indefinite objects often appear bare: Hún velur salat = “She chooses (some) salad.”

Does salat mean “salad” or “lettuce”?

Both, depending on context. Salat can mean lettuce (the vegetable) or a salad (the dish). If you need to be explicit, you can say salatblöð (lettuce leaves) or name the specific salad.

Can frekar also mean “rather/quite” in the sense of degree?

Yes. As a degree adverb it means “rather / fairly”: Þetta er frekar erfitt = “This is rather hard.” In our sentence it’s the comparative “rather (than).”

How would I flip the preference (bread instead of salad)?

Swap the nouns: Hún velur frekar brauð en salat.

How do I form a yes–no question with this sentence?

Invert subject and verb: Velur hún frekar salat en brauð?

How do I say “rather than doing something (verb)”?

Use the infinitive with að: frekar að [VERB] en (að) [VERB].
Example: Hún velur frekar að borða salat en (að) borða brauð. Often the second að is omitted if the verb repeats.

Pronunciation tips?

Approximate:
• Hún [huːn] = “hoon” (ú is a close u; stress on first syllable)
• velur [ˈvɛːlʏr] = “VEH-lur” (short, rounded u in -ur)
• frekar [ˈfrɛːkar] = “FREH-kar”
• salat [ˈsaːlat] = “SAH-lat”
• en [ɛn] = “en”
• brauð [ˈprœyð] ≈ “broyth” (au = œy; ð is like th in “this,” often very soft word-finally)

Are there useful synonyms for velja in this meaning?

• kjósa = choose/elect, also “prefer”: Hún kýs frekar salat en brauð.
• vilja = want: Hún vill frekar salat en brauð (“She would rather have salad than bread”).