Breakdown of Ég ætla að spyrja fagmanninn sjálfan.
ég
I
að
to (infinitive marker)
spyrja
to ask
ætla
to intend
sjálfur
self, oneself
fagmaðurinn
the professional
Questions & Answers about Ég ætla að spyrja fagmanninn sjálfan.
Why is the word for 'himself' written as sjálfan here instead of the dictionary form sjálfur?
As an intensifying pronoun, sjálfur has to match the gender, number, and case of the noun it emphasizes. It points back to fagmanninn (the professional), which is a masculine noun in the accusative case because it is the direct object of the verb spyrja (to ask). The masculine singular accusative form of sjálfur is sjálfan.
How is the word fagmanninn formed?
The base word is fagmaður (professional or expert), combining fag (subject or trade) and maður (man or person). Words ending in -maður change to -mann in the accusative case. To say 'the' professional, we add the masculine accusative definite article -inn to the end, resulting in fagmanninn.
Does the verb spyrja always force the person you are asking into the accusative case?
Yes, spyrja (to ask) always takes the accusative case for the person being asked. That is why the person receiving the question here is in the accusative. If you were also mentioning the actual question being asked, that second object would take the genitive case, but here we only have the person.
Does sjálfan always have to go right after the noun it emphasizes?
When used to emphasize a specific noun like this (meaning 'the professional himself'), this pronoun normally sits immediately after the word it modifies. Putting it before the noun would sound unnatural in this context.
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