Leikurinn er einfaldur.

The game is simple.

Breakdown of Leikurinn er einfaldur.

• vera: to be
• leikurinn: the game
• einfaldur: simple

Questions & Answers about Leikurinn er einfaldur.

What are the roles of each word in Leikurinn er einfaldur?

• Leikurinn – noun, the game. It is the subject of the sentence.
• er – verb, is. It is the 3rd person singular present of vera (to be).
• einfaldur – adjective, simple. It is a predicative adjective describing the subject.

So the structure is: [subject] [verb] [adjective] → The game is simple.

Why does Leikurinn have -inn at the end instead of using a separate word for the?

Icelandic usually puts the definite article on the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like English the.

• Base noun: leikur = game
• Definite form (nominative singular): leikurinn = the game

The ending -inn is the masculine nominative singular definite article.
So there is no separate word corresponding to the here; it is built into leikurinn.

What is the dictionary form of Leikurinn, and when do I use leikur instead of leikurinn?

The dictionary (base) form is:

• leikur – masculine noun, nominative singular, game

You use:

• leikur for a game (indefinite):
  • Þetta er leikur. = This is a game.
• leikurinn for the game (definite):
  • Leikurinn er einfaldur. = The game is simple.

So leikur ≈ a game, leikurinn ≈ the game (in the nominative case).

Why does einfaldur end in -ur here?

Adjectives in Icelandic agree with the noun they describe in:

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

Here:

• leikur / leikurinn is masculine, singular, nominative
• So the adjective must also be masculine singular nominative

The masculine singular nominative form of the adjective is einfaldur:

• Leikurinn er einfaldur. – The game is simple. (masc. sg. nom.)
• Þetta er einfaldur leikur. – This is a simple game.

The -ur ending is a typical masculine nominative singular ending for adjectives.

Why can’t I say Leikurinn er einfalt or Leikurinn er einföld?

Because those are different gender forms of the adjective, and they wouldn’t match leikur, which is masculine.

• einfaldur – masculine nominative singular
• einföld – feminine nominative singular
• einfalt – neuter nominative singular

Since leikur / leikurinn is masculine, the correct form is:

• Leikurinn er einfaldur.

You would use the other forms with nouns of the matching gender, for example:

• Bókin er einföld. – The book is simple. (book = feminine)
• Verkið er einfalt. – The task/work is simple. (task/work = neuter)

How would the sentence change if I want to say The games are simple?

You need to make both the noun and the adjective plural, and use the plural verb form.

• Singular: Leikurinn er einfaldur. – The game is simple.
• Plural:
  • Noun: leikir → leikirnir (the games, nominative plural)
  • Verb: eru (are)
  • Adjective: einfaldir (masculine nominative plural)

So:

• Leikirnir eru einfaldir. – The games are simple.

What is er exactly? Is it always is, or can it also mean are?

er is the 3rd person singular present form of the verb vera (to be). It corresponds to English is.

Present tense forms of vera:

• 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

So:

• Leikurinn er einfaldur. – The game is simple.
• Leikirnir eru einfaldir. – The games are simple.

er never means are; eru is the are form.

How is Leikurinn er einfaldur pronounced?

A careful IPA transcription would be approximately:

• Leikurinn er einfaldur → /ˈleiːkʏrɪn ɛr ˈeiːnˌfaltʏr/

Some tips for an English speaker:

• Stress is always on the first syllable of each word:
  • LEI-kurinn, ER, EIN-faldur
• ei in leik- and einf- is like the vowel in English they, but usually a bit shorter and tenser.
• leik-: lei as above, k is a clear k.
• -urinn: u is short, like German ü or somewhere between u in put and i in bit; -nn is a long n.
• einf-: again ei as in they, followed by an n.
• -aldur: al as in pal (but shorter), dur roughly dʏr, with y somewhere between i and u.

Don’t worry about sounding perfect; getting the stress on the first syllable and the basic vowel quality of ei is the most important at this stage.

Can I change the word order and say Einfaldur er leikurinn?

Yes, but it sounds marked and emphatic, not like a neutral everyday sentence.

• Neutral, normal:
  • Leikurinn er einfaldur. – The game is simple.
• Emphatic / stylistic:
  • Einfaldur er leikurinn. – More like: Simple, that game is. / It is the game that is simple.

The neutral word order in Icelandic is usually Subject – Verb – (rest), just like in English.
Reversing to Adjective – Verb – Subject is possible, but it adds emphasis or a poetic tone.

What is the difference between einfaldur and auðveldur? Both seem close to simple / easy.

They overlap, but the nuance is a bit different:

• einfaldur – simple, not complicated, not complex in structure.

  • Focus on simplicity or lack of complexity.
  • Leikurinn er einfaldur. – The rules, structure, or idea of the game are simple.

• auðveldur – easy, not hard to do or understand.

  • Focus on low difficulty for the person doing it.
  • Leikurinn er auðveldur. – The game is easy to play / not challenging.

Often a simple thing is also easy, so both adjectives can sometimes be used, but:

• If you want to say not complex → einfaldur
• If you want to say not difficult → auðveldur

How would I say a simple game instead of the game is simple?

You move the adjective before the noun and use the indefinite forms of both:

• einfaldur leikur – a simple game

Examples:

• Þetta er einfaldur leikur. – This is a simple game.
• Ég vil spila einfaldan leik. – I want to play a simple game.
  (Here einfaldan leik is in the accusative case, so both forms change.)

In Leikurinn er einfaldur, the adjective is predicative (after er, describing the subject).
In einfaldur leikur, the adjective is attributive (placed before the noun within the noun phrase).