Breakdown of Sumir eru uppteknir en aðrir eru lausir.
vera
to be
en
but
annar
other, another; second
sumur
some (sumir, sumar, sum)
upptekinn
busy
laus
free
Questions & Answers about Sumir eru uppteknir en aðrir eru lausir.
Why are all the pronouns and adjectives (sumir, uppteknir, aðrir, lausir) in the masculine plural?
When referring to people in general without specifying a gender, Icelandic traditionally defaults to the masculine plural. Because sumir (some people) is masculine plural here, all the adjectives and other pronouns referring back to those people must match that gender and number.
I learned that laus means 'loose'. Why is it translated as 'free' here?
While laus literally means 'loose' or 'unattached', it is the standard everyday word used for 'available' or 'free' when talking about people's schedules, seats, taxi cabs, or rooms.
Where does the word upptekinn (busy) come from?
It is made of two parts: upp (up) and tekinn (taken). So it literally means 'taken up' or 'occupied', which makes perfect sense when you think of someone whose time is fully taken up by tasks!
Could we leave out the second eru (are) to make the sentence shorter?
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