Þó að ég sé þreytt, þá hringi ég samt.

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Breakdown of Þó að ég sé þreytt, þá hringi ég samt.

• vera: to be
• samt: anyway
• þá: then
• þreytt: tired
• þó að: although
• hringja: to call

Questions & Answers about Þó að ég sé þreytt, þá hringi ég samt.

Why is it sé and not er?

Because þó (að) normally triggers the subjunctive mood in the subordinate clause. Sé is the present subjunctive of vera (to be); er is indicative. After þó (að) you’ll almost always see subjunctive:

• Present subjunctive of vera: ég sé, þú sért, hann/hún/það sé, við séum, þið séuð, þeir/þær/þau séu
• Past subjunctive of vera: ég væri, þú værir, hann/hún/það væri, við værum, þið væruð, þeir/þær/þau væru Using indicative (er/var) here is colloquial in some speech but is often marked as nonstandard in writing.

Can I drop the að in þó að? What about þótt?

Yes. All are common:

• Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), …
• Þó ég sé þreytt(ur), … (no að)
• Þótt ég sé þreytt(ur), … (single word; very common) Meaning and grammar stay the same; they all take the subjunctive.

Do I really need the þá in the main clause?

No. Þá is optional. It often appears after a fronted concessive clause to highlight the contrast. All of these are fine:

• Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), hringi ég samt. (no þá)
• Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), þá hringi ég samt. (extra emphasis/flow) If you remove samt, though, you lose the “nevertheless/anyway” meaning:
• Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), hringi ég. (grammatical but much weaker pragmatically)

Why is it hringi ég and not ég hringi after the comma?

Icelandic is a V2 language in main clauses: the finite verb comes second. When you place a clause or adverbial first (here, the þó (að) clause, and often þá), the verb moves in front of the subject:

• Fronted concessive: Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), (þá) hringi ég samt. If you put the concessive clause later, word order goes back to normal:
• Ég hringi samt, þó að ég sé þreytt(ur).

What does samt add, and where can it go?

Samt means “nevertheless/anyway/still,” carrying the concessive punch. Typical placements:

• End position: Ég hringi samt. (neutral)
• Before a non-finite verb when there’s an auxiliary: Ég mun samt hringja.
• Sentence-initial for emphasis: Samt hringi ég. (marked, contrastive) Without samt, the sentence can sound like a plain statement rather than “despite that, I’ll still call.”

Why is it þreytt and not þreyttur? Which one should I use?

Predicate adjectives agree with the subject’s gender and number:

• Speaker male/masculine: þreyttur
• Speaker female/feminine: þreytt
• Many nonbinary speakers use neuter forms; neuter singular is also þreytt So choose the form that matches how you refer to yourself: Ég er þreyttur/þreytt; in this sentence: … ég sé þreyttur/þreytt.

How can the present tense hringi mean the future (“I’ll call”)?

Icelandic has no dedicated future tense. The present often covers future meaning when context makes it clear:

• (Þá) hringi ég samt. = “I’ll call anyway.” To be explicit, you can use:
• munu
  • infinitive: (Þá) mun ég samt hringja. (future)
• ætla
  • að + infinitive: Ég ætla að hringja (samt). (intention/plan)

Does this mean “although” or “even if”? Is there a difference?

Þó (að)/þótt can cover both “although” (factual) and “even if” (hypothetical); context decides. To make “even if” extra clear, add a strengthener:

• Jafnvel þótt ég sé þreytt(ur), þá hringi ég samt.
• Enda þótt ég sé þreytt(ur), þá hringi ég samt. For a clearly factual past: Þó að ég væri þreytt(ur), þá hringdi ég samt.

How do I say this in the past or with a conditional?

• Past factual: Þó að ég væri þreytt(ur), þá hringdi ég samt.
• Present unreal/hypothetical: Þó að ég væri þreytt(ur), myndi ég samt hringja. Many prefer subjunctive (væri) after þó (að) even in factual past; indicative (var) occurs colloquially but is often discouraged in formal writing.

How do I actually call someone in Icelandic—do I need a preposition?

Yes, with a person you typically use hringja í (+ accusative):

• Ég hringi í þig. = I call you.
• Ég hringi í mömmu/lögregluna. You’ll also see hringja til (+ genitive/pronoun) in some contexts (more like “call to” someone/place): hringja til þín, hringja til skrifstofunnar. For everyday “call someone,” hringja í is the norm.

Is the comma placement here required?

When a subordinate clause comes first, Icelandic commonly places a comma after it:

• Þó að ég sé þreytt(ur), (þá) hringi ég samt. You’ll usually see that comma in edited text. No comma goes between þó and að.

Are there natural alternatives to say the same thing?

Yes:

• Þótt ég sé þreytt(ur), hringi ég samt.
• Ég hringi samt, þótt ég sé þreytt(ur).
• Þrátt fyrir að ég sé þreytt(ur), hringi ég samt.
• Stronger “even if”: Jafnvel þótt/Enda þótt ég sé þreytt(ur), þá hringi ég samt.

Why isn’t it hringja instead of hringi?

Hringi is the 1st person singular present indicative; hringja is the infinitive. Finite verbs must agree with the subject:

• Infinitive: að hringja
• Present 1sg: (ég) hringi
• Past 1sg: (ég) hringdi
• Supine/pp: hringt (e.g., ég hef hringt)

Can I use the progressive like English “I’m calling”?

Yes, Icelandic has vera + að + infinitive for ongoing actions:

• Right now: Ég er að hringja. That’s not a future. For future intention, use simple present, munu, or ætla:
• Ég hringi (á eftir). / Ég mun hringja. / Ég ætla að hringja.

How do I pronounce the tricky bits?

Approximate English-based hints:

• Þ as in voiceless “th” of “thing.”
• ð (in að) as voiced “th” of “this.”
• Þó ≈ “THO” with a long o (like “though” without the gh).
• ég / sé: initial sound like English “y”; é is a long “yeh” sound: “yeh” and “syeh.”
• þreytt: ey like “ay” in “day”; final tt is a tight t: roughly “THRAYT.”
• hringi: hr begins with a breathy/voiceless r; roughly “HRING-ih.”