Asking "How" with Hvernig
To ask how someone is doing or how an action is performed, use hvernig (how).
A common everyday greeting in Icelandic uses the verb hafa to ask someone how they "have it":
| How are you? | Hvernig hefur þú það? |
| I am just fine. | Ég hef það bara fínt. |
When talking about physical or mental feelings, Icelanders use the verb líða. Note that this verb requires the person experiencing the feeling to be in the dative case (for example, using honum instead of hann for "he").
| How does he feel today? | Hvernig líður honum í dag? |
| He feels very bad. | Honum líður mjög illa. |
You can also use hvernig to ask for descriptions or to find out the method used to do something:
| How is the soup? | Hvernig er súpan? |
| How do they learn the language? | Hvernig læra þau tungumálið? |
| How do you write the word? | Hvernig skrifar þú orðið? |
Asking "Which" or "What" with Hvaða
To ask "which" or "what" specific thing someone means, use the question word hvaða followed immediately by a noun.
The best part about hvaða is that it never changes its form! Regardless of the following noun's gender, number, or case, hvaða stays exactly the same.
| Which type does your girlfriend choose? | Hvaða tegund velur kærastan þín? |
| What size does the man try on? | Hvaða stærð mátar maðurinn? |
| Which route do we take? | Hvaða leið tökum við? |
Hvaða is perfect for narrowing down choices or identifying specific things, languages, and places:
| What language does she speak? | Hvaða tungumál talar hún? |
| What place is this? | Hvaða staður er þetta? |
