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Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.

Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.
He is finally finished with the homework.

Breakdown of Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.

hann
he
vera búinn með
to be finished with
loksins
finally
heimavinna
the homework
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Questions & Answers about Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.

What does búinn með actually mean here? Is it like saying “finished”?

Búinn með literally means something like “(being) finished with” or “(being) done with” something.

  • Hann er búinn með heimavinnuna = He is finished with the homework / He’s done with the homework.
  • It describes a state: he is now in the state of having completed the homework.

So it’s close in meaning to English is done with rather than just a simple past like finished on its own.

Why is it búinn and not the verb búa?

Búinn is the past participle of the verb búa (to live, to prepare), but in this construction it has become a kind of adjectival form meaning finished, done.

  • búa = the dictionary verb form (infinitive).
  • búinn = participle/adjective: finished, done (with).

In this sentence, búinn behaves like an adjective that agrees with the subject (hann) and combines with með to mean finished with something:

  • Hann er búinn með heimavinnuna.
    • Literally: He is finished with the homework.
Does búinn change for gender and number?

Yes. Búinn behaves like an adjective and agrees with the subject in gender and number (and case, though here it’s nominative).

Nominative forms (most common with vera = to be):

  • Masculine singular: búinn
    • Hann er búinn með heimavinnuna. – He (masc.) is done with the homework.
  • Feminine singular: búin
    • Hún er búin með heimavinnuna. – She is done with the homework.
  • Neuter singular: búið
    • Það er búið með verkefnið. – It is done with the assignment. (Much less common in this exact structure; more often in other uses like það er búið að….)
  • Plural masculine/feminine mix or masculine: búnir
    • Þeir eru búnir með heimavinnuna. – They (all/mostly men) are done with the homework.
  • Plural feminine: búnar
    • Þær eru búnar með heimavinnuna. – They (women) are done with the homework.
  • Plural neuter: búin
    • Þau eru búin með heimavinnuna. – They (mixed group, grammatically neuter) are done with the homework.
Why is heimavinnuna in the definite form (with -na)?

Heimavinna means homework (as an activity or assignment).
Heimavinnuna with the ending -na is definite accusative singular: the homework.

Using the definite form usually implies a specific, known homework assignment, for example today’s homework from class:

  • Hann er búinn með heimavinnuna.
    → He’s finished the homework (the one we both know about).

If you said:

  • Hann er búinn með heimavinnu.

this sounds more like “he is done with homework (in general / as an activity)”, which is a different meaning (almost like he doesn’t have homework anymore at all).

What case is heimavinnuna, and why is that case used?

Heimavinnuna is in the accusative singular definite.

  • Nominative: heimavinna
  • Accusative: heimavinnu → heimavinnuna (definite)

The reason: in this construction vera búinn með e-ð, the thing you are finished with is treated as a direct object of the phrase búinn með, and it takes the accusative:

  • búinn með + accusative
    • búinn með heimavinnuna – done with the homework
    • búinn með bókina – done with the book
    • búinn með matinn – done with the food/meal
What’s the difference between búinn með heimavinnuna and búinn að gera heimavinnuna?

Both mean something like having finished the homework, but the structure is slightly different:

  1. búinn með heimavinnuna

    • Uses a noun after með.
    • Focuses on being done with that thing.
    • Very idiomatic when you talk about finishing a task or consuming something:
      • Ég er búinn með kaffið. – I’ve finished my coffee.

  2. búinn að gera heimavinnuna

    • Uses að + infinitive (gera = to do).
    • Focuses more on having performed the action.
    • Similar to English have done:
      • Ég er búinn að gera heimavinnuna. – I’ve done the homework / I have completed the homework.

In everyday speech, búinn með heimavinnuna and búinn að gera heimavinnuna are both natural; búinn með + noun is a bit shorter and very common.

Could I instead say Hann hefur loksins klárað heimavinnuna? How is that different?

Yes, Hann hefur loksins klárað heimavinnuna is correct and natural. It uses the perfect tense:

  • hefur klárað = has finished

Differences in feel:

  • Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.

    • Emphasizes the resulting state: he is now done, free from homework.
    • Very conversational and common.

  • Hann hefur loksins klárað heimavinnuna.

    • Emphasizes the action of finishing itself.
    • Slightly more neutral/formal, grammatically closer to English he has finally finished the homework.

In many contexts you can use either, but vera búinn (með) is extremely common in spoken Icelandic.

Can the word order change? Where else can loksins go in this sentence?

Loksins is an adverb (finally), and its usual position here is after the verb:

  • Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna. ✅ (most natural)

Other possibilities:

  • Hann er búinn loksins með heimavinnuna.

    • Understandable, but sounds a bit odd/marked; not the typical order.

  • Loksins er hann búinn með heimavinnuna.

    • Also correct; puts extra emphasis on finally (Like: Finally, he’s done with the homework).

So the two best options are:

  1. Hann er loksins búinn með heimavinnuna.
  2. Loksins er hann búinn með heimavinnuna. (more emphatic / stylistic)
How would the sentence change if the subject were female or plural?

Only búinn changes to agree with the subject; the rest stays the same.

  • Female singular:

    • Hún er loksins búin með heimavinnuna.
      • She is finally done with the homework.

  • Male plural (or mixed group treated as masculine):

    • Þeir eru loksins búnir með heimavinnuna.
      • They (he/they, all/mostly men) are finally done with the homework.

  • Female plural:

    • Þær eru loksins búnar með heimavinnuna.
      • They (women) are finally done with the homework.

  • Neuter plural (mixed / unspecified group):

    • Þau eru loksins búin með heimavinnuna.
      • They (mixed group, grammatically neuter) are finally done with the homework.
What does heimavinna literally mean, and is it countable like English “homework”?

Heimavinna is a compound:

  • heim(a) – home
  • vinna – work

So it literally means “home-work”, i.e. work done at home → homework.

Like English homework, Icelandic heimavinna is usually treated as a mass noun, not something you count:

  • You don’t normally say “two homeworks” in Icelandic either.
  • If you want to count tasks, you use words like:
    • verkefni – assignment, exercise
    • æfing – exercise

Example:

  • Ég á þrjú verkefni í heimavinnu.
    – I have three assignments in homework.
Is there anything special about the pronunciation of heimavinnuna?

Key points for heimavinnuna:

  • Stress is on the first syllable: HEI-ma-vin-nu-na.
  • The ei in heim- is like the vowel in English say, but a bit tenser.
  • The double nn in vinnu- is pronounced as a longer /n/ (geminate consonant); Icelandic really lengthens double consonants.
  • The vowel in -vinnu- is a short, central-ish /ɪ/ (like the vowel in English sit, but shorter).
  • The final -na is unstressed and quite short, almost -na or -nə depending on dialect.

So you get something like: [ˈheiː.maˌvɪn.nʏ.na] in IPA.