Amma ruggar henni varlega í rimlarúminu þegar hún grætur.

she

Breakdown of Amma ruggar henni varlega í rimlarúminu þegar hún grætur.

• í: in
• þegar: when
• henni: her

Questions & Answers about Amma ruggar henni varlega í rimlarúminu þegar hún grætur.

Why is henni used instead of hana?

Because the verb rugga takes its object in the dative case, not the accusative.

• hún = she
• hana = her (accusative)
• henni = her (dative)

So in Amma ruggar henni..., the baby is the object of ruggar, and this verb requires dative, so henni is correct.

This is something you just have to learn with certain Icelandic verbs: not all direct objects are accusative.

What does ruggar mean exactly?

Ruggar is the present tense of rugga, meaning to rock or to gently sway.

So Amma ruggar henni means Grandma rocks her.

The form ruggar is:

• 3rd person singular
• present tense

That fits Amma = she.

Why is varlega used here, and what kind of word is it?