Þetta er sérstakt.

to be

Breakdown of Þetta er sérstakt.

• þetta: this
• sérstakur: special

Questions & Answers about Þetta er sérstakt.

What are the individual words in Þetta er sérstakt and what do they do in the sentence?

The sentence has three words:

• Þetta – a demonstrative pronoun (like this or it). It is neuter singular, nominative.
• er – the 3rd person singular present form of the verb að vera (to be).
• sérstakt – an adjective in the neuter singular nominative form, used as a predicate adjective (describing the subject via to be).

So the structure is: Subject (Þetta) + verb (er) + predicate adjective (sérstakt).

Why does sérstakt end in -t here?

Icelandic adjectives agree with the noun or pronoun they describe in gender, number, and case.

• The base form of the adjective is sérstakur (masculine nominative singular).
• Its main nominative singular forms are:
  • Masculine: sérstakur
  • Feminine: sérstök
  • Neuter: sérstakt

Because the subject Þetta is neuter singular nominative, the adjective must also be neuter singular nominative, so we use sérstakt with -t at the end.

Why is Þetta considered neuter? It feels like this or it in English.