Questions & Answers about Strákurinn fær lánaðan bolla af mér.
What does the construction fá + past participle express here?
It’s the standard way to say “to borrow” in Icelandic: fá lánað(an) = “to get (something) lent to you.” So fær lánaðan bolla means “borrows a cup.” More generally, fá + past participle can also mean “get/have something done,” e.g. Ég fékk bílinn lagaðan (I had the car repaired).
Why is it lánaðan and not some other form?
Because the past participle agrees with the noun it modifies in gender, number, and case. bolli is masculine; here it’s accusative singular (direct object), so the participle takes the strong masculine accusative ending -an: lánaðan bolla. Compare:
- Feminine: lánaða bók
- Neuter: lánað hús
- Masculine plural (acc.): lánaða bolla
Why is bolla in the accusative?
It’s the direct object of fær (from fá). The subject is nominative (Strákurinn), the thing obtained is accusative (bolla), and the lender is in a prepositional phrase (af mér, dative).
Why af mér and not frá mér? What about hjá mér?