Er það satt?

to be

Breakdown of Er það satt?

• það: it
• satt: true

Questions & Answers about Er það satt?

What are the parts of speech and the literal structure?

• Er = is (3rd person singular of vera “to be”)
• það = it/that (neuter pronoun in nominative)
• satt = true (neuter nominative singular form of the adjective sannur “true”) Structure: Verb–Subject–Predicate adjective. The statement would be Það er satt. The yes/no question flips the verb to the front: Er það satt?

Why is the verb first in the question?

Icelandic forms yes/no questions by putting the finite verb first. Statement: Það er satt. Question: Er það satt? This is a standard pattern: verb-first for polar questions; in normal statements the verb is in second position (V2).

Why is it satt and not sannur or sönn?

Adjectives agree with the grammatical gender and case of the subject. það is neuter nominative, so the adjective is neuter nominative: satt. With other pronouns:

• Hann er sannur. (masc.)
• Hún er sönn. (fem.)
• Það er satt. (neut.)

Can I say Er þetta satt? instead? What’s the difference between það and þetta?