Kennarinn hjálpar þeim.

The teacher helps them.

Breakdown of Kennarinn hjálpar þeim.

• kennarinn: the teacher
• hjálpa: to help
• þeim: them

Questions & Answers about Kennarinn hjálpar þeim.

Why is kennarinn one word—where is the word for “the”?

Icelandic usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun instead of in front of it.

• kennari = a teacher
• kennarinn = the teacher (kennari + inn)

So -inn is the masculine singular definite ending meaning “the” here. That’s why you don’t see a separate word like English the.

What is the basic dictionary form of kennarinn?

The dictionary (lemma) form is kennari.

The full relation is:

• kennari – teacher (indefinite, nominative singular)
• kennarinn – the teacher (definite, nominative singular)

So kennarinn = kennari + -inn (the).

How do I know that kennarinn is the subject of the sentence?

In Icelandic:

• The subject is normally in the nominative case.
• The finite verb usually comes in second position in a statement.
• The subject usually comes before the verb in a neutral sentence.

In Kennarinn hjálpar þeim:

• kennarinn is nominative and comes before the verb → subject
• hjálpar is the finite verb
• þeim is in a different case (dative), so it’s an object-like argument, not the subject.

Why is it hjálpar and not hjálpa?

The infinitive (dictionary form) is að hjálpa – to help.

Icelandic verbs change their endings depending on person and number. For the present tense of a regular -a verb like hjálpa:

• ég hjálpa – I help
• þú hjálpar – you help (singular)
• hann / hún / það hjálpar – he / she / it helps
• við hjálpum – we help
• þið hjálpið – you (plural) help
• þeir / þær / þau hjálpa – they help

Kennarinn is 3rd person singular → the correct form is hjálpar.

Why do we use þeim and not þeir or þá?

These are different cases of the same pronoun “they”:

• þeir – nominative (subject form) → “they”
• þá – accusative (object, many verbs) → “them”
• þeim – dative (indirect object / certain verbs) → also “them”
• þeirra – genitive (possessive) → “their / of them”

The verb að hjálpa (to help) in Icelandic requires the dative case for the person being helped. So you must say:

• hjálpa þeim – help them (DAT), not hjálpa þá.

That’s why þeim is used here.

Why does “to help” take the dative in Icelandic?

This is a matter of verb government: certain verbs in Icelandic always take a specific case for their objects, and this is largely something you have to memorize.

• að hjálpa e-m – to help someone
  → e-m = “einhverjum”, “someone” in the dative.

So:

• hjálpa mér – help me (dative)
• hjálpa þér – help you (dative)
• hjálpa honum / henni / því – help him / her / it (dative)
• hjálpa okkur – help us (dative)
• hjálpa þeim – help them (dative)

Using another case (like accusative) would simply be incorrect with this verb.

Can I change the word order, like Hjálpar kennarinn þeim?

Yes, to a point.

Basic neutral order:

• Kennarinn hjálpar þeim. – The teacher helps them.

Because Icelandic is a V2 language (the finite verb tends to be in second position), you can move elements around for emphasis, but the verb stays second:

• Kennarinn hjálpar þeim. – neutral, subject first.
• Hjálpar kennarinn þeim? – as a yes/no question (“Does the teacher help them?”), verb first.
• Þeim hjálpar kennarinn. – “It is them that the teacher helps” (emphasis on þeim).

However, something like Kennarinn þeim hjálpar in a statement is not normal word order and will sound wrong.

Could I say Kennarinn hjálpar þeir instead?

No. Þeir is the nominative form, used for subjects (they), not for the object of hjálpa.

Because hjálpa takes the dative, the only correct plural “them” here is þeim:

• ✔ Kennarinn hjálpar þeim.
• ✘ Kennarinn hjálpar þeir.
• ✘ Kennarinn hjálpar þá.

Only þeim works with hjálpa.

How would the sentence change if it were “The teacher helps him / her / us / you (plural)”?

You keep Kennarinn hjálpar, and only change the dative pronoun:

• Kennarinn hjálpar honum. – The teacher helps him.
• Kennarinn hjálpar henni. – The teacher helps her.
• Kennarinn hjálpar því. – The teacher helps it.
• Kennarinn hjálpar okkur. – The teacher helps us.
• Kennarinn hjálpar ykkur. – The teacher helps you (plural).

Does Kennarinn hjálpar þeim mean “The teacher helps them” or “The teacher is helping them”?

It can mean either, depending on context.

Icelandic doesn’t use a special continuous form like is helping. The simple present covers both:

• Kennarinn hjálpar þeim.
  • The teacher helps them (general habit)
  • The teacher is helping them (right now)

Context (or extra words like núna – now, oft – often) will show which meaning is intended.

How do you pronounce hjálpar and þeim?

Approximate guides for an English speaker:

• hjálpar

  • hj is pronounced like a voiceless “hy” sound (a bit like German “ich” plus a j-glide).
  • á is like the vowel in English “cow”.
  • Roughly: [HYOWL-par], with stress on the first syllable.

• þeim

  • þ is like English th in “thin”.
  • ei is like “ay” in “day”.
  • Roughly: [THAYM], one syllable.

This is only approximate, but close enough to be understood.