Breakdown of Ef þú hjálpar mér við umönnunina, fer hlýðni hundurinn í göngutúr.
hundurinn
the dog
þú
you
fara
to go
mér
me (dative)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
hjálpa
to help
við
with (talking with)
ef
if
hlýðinn
obedient
umönnunin
the care (looking after someone)
göngutúrinn
the walk (stroll)
Questions & Answers about Ef þú hjálpar mér við umönnunina, fer hlýðni hundurinn í göngutúr.
Why does the second part of the sentence start with the verb fer instead of the subject?
Why is mér in the dative case here?
The verb hjálpa (to help) always requires its object to be in the dative case. Even though 'me' is the direct object in English, in Icelandic you help someone in the dative, so ég becomes mér.
The dictionary form of the adjective for 'obedient' is hlýðinn. Why is it spelled hlýðni here?
Because the noun it describes, hundurinn, has a definite article attached to it (the -inn suffix). When an adjective is used with a definite noun, it must use the weak declension. For a masculine nominative word, hlýðinn changes to hlýðni.
Why does the preposition við take the accusative form umönnunina?
The preposition við can take either the accusative or dative case. When it means 'with' in the sense of participating in a task or activity (like helping with the care), it triggers the accusative case.
Why is göngutúr in the accusative case after í?
The preposition í takes the accusative case when it describes movement or entering into a state or action. Since the dog is going out for a walk (fer í göngutúr), it implies motion. If the dog were already walking, it would take the dative case.
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