Breakdown of Hún er í bleikri peysu.
vera
to be
hún
she
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
peysan
the sweater
Questions & Answers about Hún er í bleikri peysu.
Why does this sentence use í instead of a verb for wearing?
In Icelandic, the most common way to say someone is wearing an item of clothing is to use vera í (to be in). So hún er í literally means she is in, but it translates naturally as she is wearing.
What case is being used after í here?
It uses the dative case. The preposition í can take either the accusative case (usually for motion into something) or the dative case (for being located in something). Since she is already inside the sweater, bleikri peysu is in the dative case.
Why is the adjective for pink spelled bleikri instead of just bleik?
Adjectives have to match the gender, number, and case of the noun they describe. Because the noun peysa (sweater) is feminine, singular, and in the dative case here, the base adjective bleikur changes its ending to match, becoming bleikri.
How do I know peysu is the dative form?
The dictionary word for sweater is peysa. It is a weak feminine noun, meaning it ends in a vowel. For most of these weak feminine nouns, the -a ending changes to -u in all other singular cases (accusative, dative, and genitive).