Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Ég tek stundum þátt í kvöldgöngunni, en stundum er ég of þreyttur. - I sometimes take part in the evening walk, but sometimes I am too tired.

taka = to take
þáttur = part, segment
þátt is the accusative singular of þáttur and works as the direct object of tek.
í + dative then introduces what you’re taking part in.

So Ég tek þátt í kvöldgöngunni is the normal, idiomatic way to say “I sometimes take part in the evening walk.”

Why is it „þátt“ and not some other form, like „þáttur“ or „þáttar“?

Because of case and sentence role:

The base noun is þáttur (masculine) = part, section.
In Ég tek þátt, þátt is:
- singular
- masculine
- accusative case

The verb taka (to take) normally takes its direct object in the accusative. So:

(ég) tek þátt = I take (a) part → accusative þátt.

You would use:

þáttur in the nominative: Þátturinn er stuttur – “The segment is short.”
þáttar in the genitive: byrjun þáttarins – “the beginning of the segment.”

Why is it „í kvöldgöngunni“ and not „í kvöldgönguna“?

Because of how í works with case:

í + accusative = motion into / onto something
- Ég fer í kvöldgönguna – I go on the evening walk (I join it / enter it).
í + dative = location / being in or at something
- Ég tek þátt í kvöldgöngunni – I take part in the evening walk (I am participating inside that event).

Here it’s about being part of an event rather than moving into it, so dative is used: kvöldgöngunni.

What is the word „kvöldgöngunni“ made from, and why does it look so different from kvöldganga?

Breakdown:

Base noun: kvöldganga (f.) = evening walk (kvöld “evening” + ganga “walk”)
In the sentence we have:
- kvöldgöngunni
  - kvöldgöngu-: stem with ö due to vowel change (u-umlaut) common in declension
  - -nni: definite article ending in the dative singular feminine

So the forms look like:

Case	Indefinite	Definite
Nom	kvöldganga	kvöldgangan
Acc	kvöldgöngu	kvöldgönguna
Dat	kvöldgöngu	kvöldgöngunni
Gen	kvöldgöngu	kvöldgöngunnar

Because í here requires the dative, and we are talking about the specific evening walk, we get í kvöldgöngunni.

Why is „kvöldgöngunni“ definite (“the evening walk”) and not just „í kvöldgöngu“ (“in an evening walk”)?

You could say í kvöldgöngu, but it changes the meaning:

í kvöldgöngunni = in the evening walk, a specific, known event
- e.g. a regular organized evening walk everyone in the conversation already knows about.
í kvöldgöngu = in an evening walk, some evening walk, not a specific one both speakers have in mind.

In real usage, if this is a regular, familiar event (“the evening walk we often do”), the definite form is natural: í kvöldgöngunni.

Why is „stundum“ used twice? Is that normal, and can I put it in other positions?

Yes, it’s normal and quite natural for contrast:

Ég tek stundum þátt í kvöldgöngunni,
→ Sometimes I participate in the evening walk,
en stundum er ég of þreyttur.
→ but sometimes I am too tired.

The two stundum highlight the contrast “sometimes this happens, but sometimes that happens.”

Word order options:

Ég tek stundum þátt í kvöldgöngunni (very normal)
Stundum tek ég þátt í kvöldgöngunni (more emphasis on “sometimes”)
Stundum er ég of þreyttur
Ég er stundum of þreyttur

All are grammatical; moving stundum slightly changes emphasis, but the meaning is similar.

Why is the word order „en stundum er ég of þreyttur“ and not „en ég er stundum of þreyttur“?

Both are correct:

en stundum er ég of þreyttur – “but sometimes I am too tired”
en ég er stundum of þreyttur – “but I am sometimes too tired”

Icelandic is a verb‑second (V2) language in main clauses, but after a conjunction like en (but), you can put either:

the subject first: en ég er …
or some other element first for emphasis: en stundum er ég …

In the original, stundum is put in the focus position (first in the clause after en) to stress the adverb “sometimes”. It sounds very natural and slightly more contrastive.

Why is „þreyttur“ masculine? I thought „ég“ doesn’t show gender.

The pronoun ég itself has no visible gender, but Icelandic adjectives agree with the gender of the person speaking (or the noun they refer to).

þreyttur = masculine singular nominative
þreytt = feminine singular nominative (also neuter)

So:

A man would say: Ég er of þreyttur.
A woman would say: Ég er of þreytt.
Many people use þreytt if they want a gender‑neutral form.

In the given sentence, þreyttur implies the speaker is grammatically masculine.

What does „of“ mean in „of þreyttur“? Is it like English “very tired”?

of here means “too (much), excessively”, not just “very.”

of þreyttur = too tired (tired to an excessive/undesirable degree)
mjög þreyttur = very tired
frekar þreyttur = rather / quite tired
alveg þreyttur (colloquial) = “really tired / totally tired”

So stundum er ég of þreyttur specifically means “sometimes I’m too tired (to take part),” not just “very tired.”

Why is there a comma before „en“ in Icelandic? Is that like English?

Yes, very similar.

en = but, and it introduces a new clause.
Icelandic normally uses a comma before coordinating conjunctions like og, en, eða when they link two full clauses.

So:

Ég tek stundum þátt í kvöldgöngunni, en stundum er ég of þreyttur.

has two complete clauses joined by en, and the comma is standard, just like in English:
“I sometimes join the evening walk, but sometimes I am too tired.”

Is „tek“ a present tense? Could this also mean “I am sometimes taking part …” like in English present continuous?

Yes, tek is present tense of taka (ég tek = I take).

Icelandic doesn’t have a separate present continuous (am doing) form like English. Simple present usually covers both:

Ég tek stundum þátt í kvöldgöngunni
= I sometimes take part in the evening walk
and in context it can also correspond to
= I sometimes am taking part in the evening walk.

If you need to stress that it’s a current, ongoing habit, context and adverbs like núna (now), yfirleitt (usually) etc. do that job rather than a special tense form.