Breakdown of Stoppaðu og láttu fólkið ganga yfir gangbrautina.
og
and
ganga
to walk
láta
to let
yfir
past / over, across
stoppa
to stop (moving) / to stop (someone/something)
fólkið
the people
gangbrautin
the crosswalk
Questions & Answers about Stoppaðu og láttu fólkið ganga yfir gangbrautina.
Why does the command for "stoppa" get a -ðu suffix, but "láta" gets a -tu suffix?
When attaching the pronoun þú to a command, the suffix changes to match the last sound of the verb's base command form. The command form of stoppa ends in a vowel (stoppa), so it takes the standard -ðu to become stoppaðu. The command form of láta is lát, which ends in a hard 't'. This forces the attached pronoun to become a hard -tu, resulting in láttu.
How do I know what the base command form is before adding these suffixes?
For most verbs, you find the base command form (the imperative) by dropping the final -a from the infinitive. For example, láta becomes lát. However, some verbs keep the final -a, especially if they have double consonants before it or are newer borrowed words. That is why the command form of stoppa remains stoppa before adding the suffix.
Why does ganga stay in the infinitive form without the word að before it?
The verb láta (to let or make someone do something) works very much like "let" in English. It takes an object (fólkið) followed directly by a bare infinitive verb (ganga) without needing the infinitive marker að (to) in between.
Does the preposition yfir always trigger the accusative case as it does with gangbrautina?
Not always. The preposition yfir can take either the accusative or the dative case. Because the people are actively moving across the crosswalk here, it takes the accusative case to show motion and direction. If something were stationary over the crosswalk, it would take the dative case.
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