Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.

The chair is lower than the table.

Breakdown of Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.

• vera: to be
• borðið: the table
• stóllinn: the chair
• en: than
• lægri: lower

Questions & Answers about Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.

Why is it en here and not sem or og?

Use en after a comparative adjective (the -ri form) to mean “than.”

• Comparative: Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.
• Equality uses jafn … og/sem: Stóllinn er jafn lágur og/sem borðið (“as low as”).
• Preference uses words like frekar en / fremur en (“rather than”) and contrast uses en = “but”: Hann er lágur, en hún er há.

Why is the adjective lægri and not lágur or lágt?

Because it’s a comparison. The base adjective is lágur (“low”), but the comparative is lægri (“lower”). It must agree with the subject:

• Masculine subject: Stóllinn er lægri…
• Neuter subject: Borðið er lægra…
  lágt is the neuter positive form (“low”), not the comparative.

Could I say Borðið er lægra en stóllinn instead?

Yes. That’s correct and shows agreement with the subject:

• Borðið (neuter) → lægra
• Stóllinn (masculine) → lægri
  The adjective agrees with the subject before the verb, not with the noun after en.

How is lægra/lægri formed from lágur? Is it irregular?

There’s a vowel change (umlaut) in the stem: lágur → lægri (comparative) → lægstur (superlative). Other common patterns:

• hár (“tall/high”) → hærri → hæstur
• stór (“big”) → stærri → stærstur
• Fully irregular: góður → betri → bestur, mikill → meiri → mestur

What case follows en in comparisons? Why not en borðinu?

After en, the compared element takes the case it would have in the “understood” clause. Here it’s like saying “the chair is lower than the table is,” so nominative: borðið, not dative borðinu.
With pronouns, standard Icelandic prefers nominative when it’s the understood subject:

• Ég er hærri en þú (ert), though colloquial speech often uses object forms (en þig).
  If the understood verb would assign another case, you use that:
• Ég þekki hann betur en hana (þekki).

Why are both nouns definite (stóllinn, borðið)? Can I drop the article?

They’re definite because you’re talking about specific, identifiable items (“the chair,” “the table”).

• Specific: Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.
• Generic statement: Stóll er lægri en borð (“A chair is lower than a table”).
  Note: Icelandic has no separate word for “a/an”; indefiniteness is just the bare noun.

Why do the definite endings differ (-inn vs -ið)?

Because of grammatical gender:

• stóll (masculine) + definite = stóllinn
• borð (neuter) + definite = borðið
  Icelandic adds the definite article as a suffix that matches the noun’s gender/number/case.

Does the adjective agree with the first noun or the one after en?

With the first noun (the subject). In Stóllinn er lægri en borðið, lægri agrees with stóllinn (masc. nom. sg.). The noun after en does not control the adjective’s form.

Can I front the adjective for emphasis, like Lægri er stóllinn en borðið?

Yes, that’s grammatical and obeys Icelandic V2 word order (the verb er stays in second position). It’s more formal/poetic. The neutral, everyday order is Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.

Is en here the same word as “but”? Isn’t that confusing?

Yes, en can mean both “than” and “but.” Context disambiguates:

• “than”: Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.
• “but”: Stóllinn er lágur, en borðið er hátt.
  Don’t confuse en with enn (“still/yet”): Hann er enn lægri (“He’s still lower”).

How do I pronounce the tricky letters in this sentence?

Approximate English-friendly guide:

• ó ≈ long “o” as in “go” (a bit rounded).
• æ ≈ “eye.”
• ll in stóllinn is a voiceless “tl” sound. So: stóllinn ≈ “STOHL-tlin.”
• ð in borðið is the voiced “th” of “this.” The ending -ið ≈ “-ith.” So: borðið ≈ “BOR-thith.”
• en ≈ “en” (like “pen” without the p).
  This is only a rough guide; real Icelandic has length and devoicing patterns you’ll pick up with listening.

Should I ever use stuttur instead of lágur when talking about height?

Use lágur for “low” (vertical height/position). stuttur means “short” (length/duration), e.g., a short cable or a short meeting. For tall/high, use hár (adj.):

• Stóllinn er lágur / lægri.
• Borðið er hátt / hærra.
  For people, lágvaxinn (“short of stature”) is also common.

When do I use frekar en / fremur en / heldur en?

These express preference/contrast, not a plain comparative of an adjective:

• Preference: Ég vil te frekar en kaffi. (“I’d rather have tea than coffee.”)
• Contrast after negation: Ekki þetta, heldur en hitt.
  For adjective comparisons, you normally just use the comparative + en: lægra en, hærra en, betra en.

Can I drop er and say Stóllinn lægri en borðið?

No. Icelandic needs the copula er (“is/are”) in such predicate sentences. Keep er: Stóllinn er lægri en borðið.