Breakdown of Garðurinn verður aldrei friðaður.
garðurinn
the park / the garden
aldrei
never
verða
to become; will be
friða
to protect
Questions & Answers about Garðurinn verður aldrei friðaður.
Why is verður used here instead of er?
In Icelandic, the passive voice uses vera (to be) for a state and verða (to become/will be) for an action or future event. Because this sentence is talking about something that will (never) happen in the future, we use verður. If we used er, it would mean the park is currently not in a state of protection.
Why does the past participle friðaður end in -ur?
In the passive voice, the past participle acts like an adjective and must agree with the subject in gender, number, and case. Garðurinn (the park) is a masculine, singular word in the nominative case, so friðaður takes the masculine singular nominative ending -ur.
Is it normal for aldrei to split the verbs verður and friðaður?
Yes. In main clauses, adverbs like aldrei (never) and ekki (not) usually come right after the first conjugated verb. Since verður is the conjugated verb and friðaður is the past participle, aldrei naturally sits between them.
Does friðaður mean protected from a physical attack?
Not usually. Friðaður comes from the verb friða, which relates to the word friður (peace). It is specifically used for conservation—like a protected national park, a heritage building, or an endangered species. To protect someone from physical danger, you would use a verb like vernda.
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