When dealing with redacted documents or government cover-ups, you will often need to say that "nobody" knows the truth, or that you cannot find "any" information. In Icelandic, you express this using the word neinn.
Using "neinn" (any / anybody)
neinn is a negative polarity word. On its own, it doesn't actually mean "nobody" or "nothing"—it means "any", "anybody", or "anything". It is used almost exclusively in negative contexts, such as in sentences with ekki (not), with negative prepositions like án (without), or in questions.
When standing alone as a pronoun, neinn usually means "anybody" or "anyone". The neuter singular form, neitt, is used to mean "anything".
"neinn" as a Determiner
neinn can also be placed directly before a noun to mean "any". When used this way, it acts as a determiner and must agree with its noun in gender, case, and number.
It declines exactly like the number einn (one), just with an n- added to the beginning. Here are the singular forms:
| Case | Masculine | Feminine | Neuter |
|---|
| Nominative | neinn | nein | neitt |
| Accusative | neinn | neina | neitt |
| Dative | neinum | neinni | neinu |
| Genitive | neins | neinnar | neins |
Note: When modifying a plural noun, *neinn takes plural endings, such as neinar for feminine plural nouns or nein for neuter plural nouns.*
State Secrets
Discussing cover-ups introduces a few specialized nouns. Notice how these are used in context when finding proof of a conspiracy or dealing with a leak.