Questions & Answers about Sögnin í þessari setningu er í þátíð.
What does each word in Sögnin í þessari setningu er í þátíð mean?
A word-by-word breakdown is:
- Sögnin = the verb
- í = in
- þessari = this (feminine singular, dative)
- setningu = sentence (dative singular)
- er = is
- í = in
- þátíð = past tense
So the whole sentence means The verb in this sentence is in the past tense.
Why does sögnin mean the verb and not just verb?
In Icelandic, the definite article is often added to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word.
- sögn = verb
- sögnin = the verb
That final -in is the definite article here.
This is very common in Icelandic:
- maður = man
- maðurinn = the man
So sögnin is literally verb-the.
Why is it þessari setningu?