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Stafirnir eru ekki skarpir frá stuttri fjarlægð.

Stafirnir eru ekki skarpir frá stuttri fjarlægð.
The letters are not sharp from a short distance.
From Lesson 277:Questions of degree (hvað / hversu)·Icelandic

Questions & Answers about Stafirnir eru ekki skarpir frá stuttri fjarlægð.

How would I ask 'How sharp are the letters?' using the grammar from this lesson?
You can use either Hversu skarpir eru stafirnir? or Hvað eru stafirnir skarpir? Both hversu and hvað mean 'how' when asking about degree. Notice that the adjective skarpir still has to agree with the masculine plural noun stafirnir in the question.
Why is the adjective stuttri in this specific form?
The preposition frá always requires the following words to be in the dative case. Since fjarlægð (distance) is a feminine noun, the adjective stuttur (short) must take the dative feminine singular form, which is stuttri.
Does the word fjarlægð change its spelling in the dative case here?
No, it looks exactly the same as its base dictionary form. Fjarlægð is a feminine noun, and words ending in -lægð or -gerð often have the same form in the nominative, accusative, and dative singular cases.
Can stafirnir mean anything else besides the letters on a page?
Yes! The base word stafur translates to a letter of the alphabet, but it is also the word for a staff, stick, or cane. You will often see it in compound words like göngustafur (walking stick) or töfrastafur (magic wand).

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