Blóðið er rautt.

to be

Breakdown of Blóðið er rautt.

• rauður: red
• blóðið: the blood

Questions & Answers about Blóðið er rautt.

What does -ið in blóðið mean?

-ið is the definite article attached to the end of the noun. Icelandic usually puts the onto the noun instead of using a separate word like English.

So:

• blóð = blood
• blóðið = the blood

In this sentence, -ið is the neuter singular definite ending.

Why is the article attached to the noun instead of being a separate word?

That is a normal feature of Icelandic grammar. The definite article is usually a suffix, not a separate word.

So instead of English:

• the blood

Icelandic normally says:

• blóðið

You will see this all the time in Icelandic:

• hús = house
• húsið = the house

Why is the verb er used here?

Er is the present tense, 3rd person singular form of vera (to be).

Because blóðið is singular, Icelandic uses singular er:

• ég er = I am
• þú ert = you are
• hann / hún / það er = he / she / it is

So Blóðið er rautt follows the same basic pattern as English X is Y.

Why is it rautt and not rauður or ?