Bíómyndin er skemmtileg.

The movie is fun.

Breakdown of Bíómyndin er skemmtileg.

• vera: to be
• skemmtilegur: fun
• bíómynd: the movie

Questions & Answers about Bíómyndin er skemmtileg.

Where is the word “the” in this sentence?

Icelandic does not use a separate word for “the”. Instead, it attaches a definite ending to the noun.

• bíómynd = movie / film
• bíómyndin = the movie

The ending -in is the feminine singular definite article in its nominative form.
So bíómyndin er skemmtileg literally is “movie-the is fun/entertaining.”

Could this also mean “A movie is fun”, or is it only “The movie is fun”?

As written, bíómyndin er skemmtileg is definite and normally understood as:

• “The movie is fun/entertaining.”

To say something more general like “movies are fun”, you would normally use plural or add an adverb like “often”:

• Bíómyndir eru skemmtilegar. – Movies are fun.
• Bíómynd er oft skemmtileg. – A movie is often fun.

So with -in, this sentence is specifically about one particular movie that both speakers know about.

Why does bíómynd take the ending -in and not something else?

Because bíómynd is a feminine noun. In the nominative singular definite, most feminine nouns take -in.

Very simplified pattern:

• Masculine: -inn
  
  • stóll → stóllinn (the chair)
• Feminine: -in
  
  • bók → bókin (the book)
  • bíómynd → bíómyndin (the movie)
• Neuter: -ið
  
  • borð → borðið (the table)

So -in here is “the” for a feminine noun in subject position.

How do I know that bíómynd is feminine?

You generally have to learn the gender with each noun, but there are clues:

1. Dictionaries usually mark gender, e.g. bíómynd (kvk.) where kvk. = kvenkyn (feminine).
2. The definite ending gives it away:
   • bíómyndin (not bíómyndinn or bíómyndið) → feminine.

Over time, you’ll start to recognize typical patterns, but for now it’s best to always memorize the noun with its gender.

Why is it skemmtileg and not skemmtilegur or skemmtilegt?

The adjective skemmtilegur (= fun, entertaining) agrees with the noun in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here, the subject is bíómyndin:

• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case: nominative

The nominative singular strong forms of skemmtilegur are:

• Masculine: skemmtilegur
• Feminine: skemmtileg
• Neuter: skemmtilegt

Since bíómyndin is feminine, the adjective must also be feminine → skemmtileg.

So:

• Bíómyndin er skemmtileg. – The movie is fun.
• Þátturinn er skemmtilegur. – The show is fun. (masc.)
• Leikritið er skemmtilegt. – The play is fun. (neuter)

Why doesn’t the adjective also have a definite ending, like skemmtilega or something similar?

In this sentence, skemmtileg is a predicative adjective — it comes after the verb “to be” and describes the subject.

In Icelandic, predicative adjectives are usually in the strong form, without the definite ending, even when the noun is definite.

Compare:

• Bíómyndin er skemmtileg.
  
  • The movie is fun.
  • bíómyndin is definite; skemmtileg is strong (no article).

But if the adjective stands before the noun (attributive), it often takes a weak, definite form to match a definite noun:

• hin skemmtilega bíómynd – the fun movie
  
  • Here skemmtilega is the weak definite feminine form.

So: after “er” → strong form (skemmtileg),
before a definite noun → often weak form (skemmtilega bíómyndin in some contexts).

Why is the word order “Bíómyndin er skemmtileg” and not something like “Skemmtileg er bíómyndin”?

The neutral word order in Icelandic, especially in simple statements, is:

Subject – Verb – Complement

So:

• Bíómyndin (subject)
• er (verb)
• skemmtileg (complement / adjective)

You can say “Skemmtileg er bíómyndin”, but that has a marked, emphatic feel, a bit like saying:

• “Fun is the movie” or “The movie is fun, that one.”

It places extra emphasis on the adjective. For everyday neutral speech, “Bíómyndin er skemmtileg” is the normal choice.

What exactly does skemmtileg mean? Is it “fun” or “funny”?

Skemmtileg usually means fun, enjoyable, entertaining, and sometimes also amusing.

• For a movie, skemmtileg typically means it’s enjoyable to watch — not necessarily that it’s only about jokes, but that it’s fun overall.
• Icelandic has fyndinn more specifically for “funny” in the sense of “makes you laugh”.

So:

• Bíómyndin er skemmtileg. – The movie is entertaining / fun.
• Bíómyndin er fyndin. – The movie is funny (it makes you laugh).

What does “bíómynd” literally mean, and can I just say “myndin” instead?

bíómynd is a compound:

• bíó – cinema, movie theater
• mynd – picture, image

So bíómynd is literally “cinema-picture” → movie / film.

You will often hear both:

• Bíómyndin er skemmtileg. – The movie (the film) is fun.
• Myndin er skemmtileg. – The movie / the film is fun.

In many contexts, myndin alone is enough and is very natural, especially if it’s clear you’re talking about a film, not a photograph or painting.

How do I say “The movies are fun” instead of “The movie is fun”?

You have to make both the noun and the adjective plural and keep them agreeing in gender, number and case.

• Singular: Bíómyndin er skemmtileg. – The movie is fun.
• Plural: Bíómyndirnar eru skemmtilegar. – The movies are fun.

Changes:

1. bíómyndin → bíómyndirnar
   
   • -ir for feminine plural, -nar for definite plural.
2. er → eru (3rd person singular → plural)
3. skemmtileg → skemmtilegar (feminine plural nominative strong form)

What form of the verb “to be” is er? Does it change with the subject?

er is the present tense form of “vera” (to be) used with 1st person singular and 3rd person singular:

Present tense 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 in Bíómyndin er skemmtileg, the subject is 3rd person singular (bíómyndin = it), so er is the correct form.

What case is bíómyndin in here, and when would it change?

In Bíómyndin er skemmtileg, bíómyndin is in the:

• Nominative singular definite

It is the subject of the sentence, so nominative is used.

The case changes when the noun plays a different role, e.g. as an object:

• Ég horfði á bíómyndina. – I watched the movie.
  
  • bíómyndina = accusative singular definite

So:

• As the subject (“the movie is…”) → bíómyndin (nominative).
• As an object (“watch the movie”) → bíómyndina (accusative).

How would I say “The movie is very fun” or “really fun”?

You add an adverb such as mjög (very) or rosalega / virkilega (really), and it goes before the adjective:

• Bíómyndin er mjög skemmtileg. – The movie is very fun.
• Bíómyndin er rosalega skemmtileg. – The movie is really fun.
• Bíómyndin er virkilega skemmtileg. – The movie is really/indeed fun.

The pattern is:

[Subject] + er + [adverb] + [adjective]
Bíómyndin er mjög skemmtileg.