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Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt. - I tell you my little secret.

Hardcore Icelandic
/Lesson 21
/Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.

Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.

Word

Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.

Meaning

I tell you my little secret.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Icelandic

Lesson

Breakdown of Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.

Questions & Answers about Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.

What does each word in Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt literally mean, and how does the Icelandic word order compare to English?

Word-by-word:

Ég = I (1st person singular subject pronoun, nominative case)
segi = say / tell (present tense, 1st person singular of segja)
þér = to you (2nd person singular, dative case)
lítið = little / small (adjective, neuter singular)
leyndarmál = secret (neuter noun)
mitt = my (possessive pronoun, neuter singular)

Icelandic word order here is basically:

I say you-DAT little secret my

In normal English this becomes:

I’ll tell you my little secret.

So the order is very close to English, except that:

the to in to you is expressed by the dative case (þér) instead of a separate word
the possessive mitt comes after the noun rather than before it.

Why is þér used here instead of þú or þig for you?

Icelandic marks grammatical case on pronouns:

þú = you (subject, nominative)
- Þú sérð mig. =

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You see me.

þig = you (direct object, accusative)

Ég sé þig. = I see you.

þér = you (indirect object, dative)

Ég segi þér… = I tell you… (to you)

The verb segja typically takes:

the person you tell: dative
the thing you tell: accusative

So we get:

Ég (nominative subject)
segi (verb)
þér (dative indirect object = to you)
lítið leyndarmál mitt (accusative direct object = the thing being told)

Why is there no separate word for will in the Icelandic sentence?

Icelandic often uses the present tense where English would use will for a near-future or planned action, especially in everyday speech.

So:

Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.
can mean either:
- I am telling you my little secret (now)., or
- I’ll tell you my little secret (soon).

Context decides whether it feels present or future.
If you really want to stress the future, you can use munu:

Ég mun segja þér lítið leyndarmál mitt. = I will tell you my little secret.

But in many situations, the plain present segi is more natural.

Why is there no word like a or the in lítið leyndarmál mitt?

Icelandic doesn’t have a separate a / an / the as independent words. Instead it uses:

no article for something that English might call a / some
a suffix on the noun for the (definite article)
possessive pronouns like mitt (my) that already make things specific

Here we have:

leyndarmál = secret (no article)
leyndarmálið = the secret (definite suffix -ið)
leyndarmál mitt = my secret

Because mitt makes it clear which secret, Icelandic is happy without a or the.
So lítið leyndarmál mitt naturally translates as my little secret.

Why is the possessive mitt at the end? Can I say mitt lítið leyndarmál instead?

The usual and most neutral position for possessive pronouns in Icelandic is after the noun:

bíll minn = my car
húsið mitt = my house
lítið leyndarmál mitt = my little secret

This post-nominal position is the default.

Putting the possessive before the noun is possible but marked and often adds emphasis or a different style:

mitt litla leyndarmál
can sound more expressive, something like my very own little secret, with extra focus on my.

So:

lítið leyndarmál mitt = normal, everyday order
mitt litla leyndarmál = more emphatic, stylistic

How do lítið, leyndarmál, and mitt agree with each other grammatically?

All three words match in gender, number, and case:

leyndarmál: neuter, singular, accusative (direct object)
lítið: neuter, singular, accusative (agrees with leyndarmál)
mitt: neuter, singular, accusative (also agrees with leyndarmál)

Neuter singular -t endings:

adjective: lítið
possessive: mitt

If the noun changed (e.g., a masculine or feminine noun), lítið and mitt would change form to match it. Agreement is strict in Icelandic.

What is the pattern of the verb segja in this kind of sentence? Is Ég segi þér X a general structure?

Yes. Segja often follows this pattern:

segja + einhverjum (dative) + eitthvað (accusative)
to tell + someone + something

Examples:

Ég segi þér söguna. = I tell you the story.
Hún sagði mér allt. = She told me everything.
Við sögðum honum fréttirnar. = We told him the news.

In your sentence:

Ég = I (subject, nominative)
segi = tell
þér = to you (indirect object, dative)
lítið leyndarmál mitt = my little secret (direct object, accusative)

Could I also say Ég segi þér frá leyndarmáli mínu? How does that differ in meaning?

Yes, that is grammatical, but the structure and nuance change a bit.

Ég segi þér lítið leyndarmál mitt.
Literally: I tell you my little secret.
Structure: segja e-m e-ð (tell someone something, direct object).
Ég segi þér frá leyndarmáli mínu.
Literally: I tell you about a secret of mine.
Structure: segja e-m frá e-u (tell someone about something), with:
- frá = from / about
- leyndarmáli mínu = dative (because of frá)

Nuance:

With lítið leyndarmál mitt, the secret itself is the direct object being told.
With frá leyndarmáli mínu, you are telling about a secret; it sounds slightly more indirect, like giving information related to it.

What tense is segi, and how is it conjugated with other subjects?

Sega is the present tense form of segja for 1st person singular.

Present tense of segja:

ég segi = I say / tell
þú segir = you say / tell
hann / hún / það segir = he / she / it says / tells
við segjum = we say / tell
þið segið = you (plural) say / tell
þeir / þær / þau segja = they say / tell

So:

Ég segi þér… = I tell you…
Hún segir mér… = She tells me…

How would I say Tell me your little secret! using the same words?

Use the imperative of segja (segðu) and the dative of ég (mér):

Segðu mér lítið leyndarmál þitt!

Word by word:

Segðu = tell! (imperative singular of segja)
mér = to me (1st person singular, dative)
lítið leyndarmál = little secret
þitt = your (neuter singular, matching leyndarmál)

So this is the direct command form: Tell me your little secret!

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