Gaffallinn er á borðinu.

to be

Breakdown of Gaffallinn er á borðinu.

• borðið: the table
• á: on
• gaffallinn: the fork

Questions & Answers about Gaffallinn er á borðinu.

Why is there no separate word for the in this sentence?

In Icelandic, the definite article is usually added to the end of the noun instead of written as a separate word.

So:

• gaffallinn = the fork
• borðinu = the table in the form required here

A native English speaker often expects a separate word like the, but Icelandic usually builds that meaning into the noun itself.

Why does gaffallinn end in -inn, but borðinu ends in -inu?

Because Icelandic noun endings change based on:

• gender
• case
• number
• definiteness

These two nouns are not in the same form:

• gaffallinn is masculine, singular, nominative, definite
• borðinu is neuter, singular, dative, definite

So even though both contain the meaning the, they do not take the same ending.

What are the dictionary forms of gaffallinn and borðinu?

The dictionary forms are:

• gaffall = fork
• borð = table