Breakdown of Nemandinn þykist vera veikur í dag.
vera
to be
nemandinn
the student
veikur
sick
í dag
today
þykjast
to pretend
Questions & Answers about Nemandinn þykist vera veikur í dag.
The lesson is about 'eins og' (as if), so why isn't it used here to say the student acts 'as if' he is sick?
The verb þykjast translates directly to 'pretend'. Because it already carries the meaning of making yourself out to be something, you don't need eins og. You simply follow it with an infinitive verb, which is vera (to be) in this sentence.
What is the base form of þykist and why does it end in -st?
It comes from þykjast (to pretend). The -st ending shows it is a middle voice verb. It is related to the active verb þykja (to seem / to consider). While you use the active verb for opinions, like mér þykir (I think/find), the -st form changes the meaning to 'pretend' and acts like a normal verb with a nominative subject.
Why is the adjective veikur in the nominative case when it is at the end of the sentence?
Because it is linked to the subject by the infinitive verb vera (to be). The verb 'to be' doesn't take an object; instead, it acts like an equals sign. The adjective veikur (sick) describes the subject Nemandinn (the student), so it must match its masculine, singular, nominative form.
What type of noun is nemandinn and why does it end in -inn?
It is a weak masculine noun. The base word is nemandi (student). Weak masculine nouns end in -i in the nominative singular. Here it is the subject, so it stays nominative and just adds the definite article -nn to mean 'the student'.
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