Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

Autumn is short but calm.

Breakdown of Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

• vera: to be
• en: but
• stuttur: short
• rólegur: calm
• haustið: the autumn

Questions & Answers about Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

Why does it say Haustið and not just Haust?

Haust is autumn / fall, and haustið is the autumn / the fall.

Icelandic usually talks about seasons with the definite article, even when English would often leave it out:

• Haustið er stutt. – Autumn is short / The autumn is short.
• Veturinn er kaldur. – Winter is cold / The winter is cold.

So -ið is the definite article attached to the noun:

• haust (indefinite: autumn)
• haustið (definite: the autumn)

What exactly is the ending -ið in Haustið? Is that always “the”?

Yes. In haustið, the -ið is the definite article meaning the, attached as a suffix to the noun.

For a regular neuter noun like haust:

• haust = autumn (indefinite)
• haustið = the autumn (definite)

Neuter nouns in the nominative singular often take -ið as their definite ending:

• barn → barnið (the child)
• bréf → bréfið (the letter)
• haust → haustið (the autumn)

What gender is haust, and why do the adjectives both end in -t?

Haust is a neuter noun.

Adjectives in Icelandic must agree with the noun in:

• Gender (masculine, feminine, neuter)
• Number (singular, plural)
• Case (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive)

Here the subject is:

• Haustið – neuter, singular, nominative

So the adjectives must also be:

• neuter, singular, nominative

That form for both stuttur (short) and rólegur (calm/quiet) is:

• stutt
• rólegt

Hence: Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

Does stutt only mean “physically short,” or can it refer to time like here?

Stuttur / stutt / stutt can mean:

• short in length:
  
  • stutt gata – a short street
• short in duration / time:
  
  • stuttur tími – a short time
  • stutt frí – a short holiday

In this sentence, Haustið er stutt, it means the season is short in duration, not that it is physically short. Using stutt for a short period of time is completely normal.

What does rólegt mean exactly? “Quiet,” “calm,” or “peaceful”?

Rólegur / róleg / rólegt can cover all of these ideas, depending on context:

• quiet (not noisy)
• calm (not busy or hectic)
• peaceful / tranquil

In Haustið er stutt en rólegt, common translations would be:

• The autumn is short but calm.
• The autumn is short but peaceful / quiet.

All are reasonable; the core idea is that autumn is not hectic or turbulent.

Why is it rólegt and not rólegur or róleg?

Because it has to agree with haustið, which is neuter.

The base adjective is:

• masculine: rólegur
• feminine: róleg
• neuter: rólegt

Since Haustið is neuter singular:

• Haustið er rólegt.

If the noun were masculine or feminine, it would change:

• Veturinn er rólegur. – The winter is calm. (masc.)
• Nóttin er róleg. – The night is calm. (fem.)

Why is the verb er used here? Is that the only present tense form of “to be”?

The verb vera = to be.
Its present tense forms are:

• ég er – I am
• þú ert – you are (singular)
• hann / hún / það er – he / she / it is
• við erum – we are
• þið eruð – you are (plural)
• þeir / þær / þau eru – they are

In Haustið er stutt, the subject Haustið is third person singular (it), so you use:

• Haustið er… – The autumn is…

So er here is the normal “is / am / are” form used with singular third person.

Why do we use en and not og between the adjectives?

• og = and
• en = but

In the sentence:

• Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

There is a contrast:

• Autumn is short (maybe that sounds negative),
• but it is calm (a positive aspect).

So en is used to show contrast, just like but in English.

Could we say Haustið er stutt og rólegt instead? How would that sound?

Yes, Haustið er stutt og rólegt is grammatically correct.

The nuance shifts slightly:

• en (but) – highlights a contrast:
  It’s short, but still calm (maybe surprisingly calm despite being short).
• og (and) – simply adds another property:
  It’s short and calm (just listing two characteristics, no contrast implied).

Both are natural; which you choose depends on whether you want that feeling of “but” or just simple addition.

Why can’t I just say Haustið er stutt, rólegt with a comma like in English?

You can see such a structure, especially in literary or very elliptical style, but:

• The normal, clear way is to link adjectives with og (and) or en (but).
• Haustið er stutt, rólegt. feels clipped or stylised and could sound incomplete in everyday speech.

So for regular usage:

• Haustið er stutt og rólegt.
• Haustið er stutt en rólegt.

How would this sentence change if I talked about autumns in general (plural)?

The plural of haust is haust (indefinite) and haustin (definite).
In the nominative plural definite:

• haustin – the autumns

The verb and adjectives must then agree in number (plural):

• Haustin eru stutt en róleg.
  – The autumns are short but calm.

Here:

• eru = they are (3rd person plural of vera)
• stutt = neuter plural nominative of stuttur
• róleg = neuter plural nominative of rólegur

How is Haustið er stutt en rólegt pronounced?

Approximate pronunciation (using English-like hints):

• Haustið ≈ HOIST-ith
  
  • au like the vowel in boy but more rounded
  • final ð is a soft th sound (as in this) or very lightly pronounced
• er ≈ air (short)
• stutt ≈ stut with u like German ü or French u (a fronted u)
• en ≈ en (like English hen without the h)
• rólegt ≈ ROH-lekht
  
  • ró is long: ró ≈ row (as in row a boat) but a bit tenser
  • g
    • t at the end gives a -kht-like sound in careful speech

So very roughly: HOIST-ith ehr stut en ROH-lekht.

Why is the season treated as neuter? Could it be another gender?

In Icelandic, every noun has a fixed grammatical gender, which is mostly arbitrary and must be learned with the word.

• haust (autumn) is neuter.
• Other seasons:
  • vetur (winter) – masculine
  • vor (spring) – neuter
  • sumar (summer) – neuter

You cannot change the gender; you must adapt the adjectives and pronouns to the noun’s given gender. That’s why we have Haustið er stutt and not something like stuttur or stuttar.

Is there anything special about using the definite form with seasons, like Haustið instead of Haust?

Yes. In Icelandic, when speaking generally about a particular season, the definite form is very common and often sounds more natural:

• Haustið er stutt. – Autumn is short.
• Veturinn er kaldur. – Winter is cold.
• Sumarið er gott. – Summer is good / nice.

You can sometimes use the indefinite form haust in other constructions, especially with prepositions or adverbials:

• á hausti – in (the) autumn
• á haustin – in the autumns / in autumn (habitually)

But in a simple statement with the season as subject, the definite form (Haustið) is the normal choice.