Stærðin á buxunum passar ekki.

not

Breakdown of Stærðin á buxunum passar ekki.

• á: on
• stærðin: the size
• buxurnar: the pants

Questions & Answers about Stærðin á buxunum passar ekki.

Why is it á buxunum (“on the pants”) when the meaning is “of the pants”?

In everyday Icelandic, the genitive (“of”) is often paraphrased with á + dative, especially with nouns like stærð (“size”): stærðin á X = “the size of X.” So stærðin á buxunum is the colloquial, very natural way to say “the size of the pants.” It’s not literally “on” here; it’s a set phrase meaning “of.”

Why is buxunum in the dative plural?

Because á takes the dative when it expresses a static relation (“on/at” as location/state), and in this construction (meaning “of”), it also uses the dative. The noun buxur (“pants, trousers”) is plural-only, so:

• dative plural indefinite: buxum
• dative plural definite: buxunum (used here)

Are buxur always plural? Can I use a singular form?

Yes, buxur is plural-only (like English “pants”). You don’t normally use a singular. If you need to count, you can say eitt par buxna (“one pair of pants”), where par (“pair”) takes a genitive plural (buxna).

Why is stærðin definite?

Icelandic marks definiteness with a suffix when a specific, identifiable item is meant. Here, you’re talking about a particular size you tried or selected, so stærðin (“the size”) is the natural choice. English often omits “the” here, but Icelandic typically includes it.