Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær.

Breakdown of Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær.

ég
I
vera
to be
reið
angry
geta
to be able
hafa
to have
í gær
yesterday
þó að
although
henni
her
fyrirgefa
to forgive

Questions & Answers about Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær.

Why is it get fyrirgefið instead of get fyrirgefa?

After geta in Icelandic, the next verb is normally in the supine form, not the infinitive.

For this verb:

  • að fyrirgefa = infinitive
  • fyrirgefið = supine

So:

  • Ég get fyrirgefið henni = I can forgive her

This is a very common thing that surprises English speakers, because fyrirgefið looks like a past-participle-type form, but here it is just the normal form used after geta.


Why is it henni and not hana?

Because fyrirgefa takes the dative case.

The pattern is:

  • fyrirgefa einhverjum = to forgive someone

So with the pronoun hún:

  • hún = nominative
  • hana = accusative
  • henni = dative

That means henni is the correct form here.


What does þó að mean?

Þó að means although, even though, or though.

It introduces a subordinate clause that adds a contrast:

  • Ég get fyrirgefið henni = I can forgive her
  • þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær = even though I was angry yesterday

So the whole sentence has a concessive meaning: one fact is true despite another fact.


Is the in þó að the same as the used before an infinitive?

No. Here is simply part of the fixed conjunction þó að.

So in this sentence:

  • þó að = although / even though

It is not the infinitive marker here.

That is different from something like:

  • að fyrirgefa = to forgive

Also notice that after geta, you do not use the infinitive marker .


Could I also say þótt instead of þó að?

Yes. Þótt is a very common equivalent of þó að.

So these are both possible in the same kind of sentence:

  • Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær.
  • Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þótt ég hafi verið reið í gær.

The meaning is essentially the same. Learners should just recognize both.


Why is it hafi and not hefur, var, or hafði?

Because þó að commonly triggers the subjunctive in Icelandic.

Here:

  • hafa = to have
  • hafi = present subjunctive of hafa

So:

  • þó að ég hafi verið... is a normal subjunctive clause after þó að

This is one of the most useful patterns to learn:

  • þó að / þótt
    • subjunctive

English usually does not show this kind of mood difference so clearly, which is why it can feel unfamiliar.


Why does Icelandic use hafi verið with í gær? In English, have been yesterday sounds wrong.

That is a very good question. Icelandic tense usage does not match English tense usage exactly.

Even though hafi verið looks like have been, in this kind of clause Icelandic often uses this form naturally where English would simply use the simple past:

  • þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær
  • natural English: even though I was angry yesterday

So you should not translate the tense word-for-word. The important idea is that the anger was a prior state, and English expresses that more naturally here with was.


Why is it reið and not reiður?

Because the adjective agrees with the speaker’s grammatical gender.

Here:

  • reið = feminine
  • reiður = masculine

So this sentence is spoken by a female speaker:

  • ég hafi verið reið

A male speaker would say:

  • Ég get fyrirgefið henni, þó að ég hafi verið reiður í gær.

What exactly does í gær modify?

It modifies the subordinate clause:

  • ég hafi verið reið í gær = I was angry yesterday

It does not go with get fyrirgefið.

So the sentence means:

  • I can forgive her now,
  • even though I was angry yesterday.

Can I put the þó að clause first?

Yes.

You can say:

  • Þó að ég hafi verið reið í gær, get ég fyrirgefið henni.

This is very useful to notice because the main clause then shows normal Icelandic V2 word order:

  • get ég
  • not ég get

So when something else comes first, the finite verb usually comes before the subject in the main clause.


Does þó að always take the subjunctive?

For a learner, the safest rule is: usually yes.

In standard Icelandic, þó að / þótt very often appears with the subjunctive, especially in this kind of concessive sentence. You may sometimes come across other patterns, but if you are learning the structure, þó að + subjunctive is the right one to master first.

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