Learn Icelandic: Kóngulóin er óhrædd við köttinn okkar.

Kóngulóin er óhrædd við köttinn okkar.

The spider is unafraid of our cat.

Breakdown of Kóngulóin er óhrædd við köttinn okkar.

Questions & Answers about Kóngulóin er óhrædd við köttinn okkar.

How is the word óhrædd formed here?

It is made by adding the negative prefix ó- (meaning un- or in-) to the adjective hrædd (afraid). Because kóngulóin (the spider) is a feminine noun, the adjective drops the masculine -ur ending from its dictionary form (hræddur) to become hrædd before adding the prefix.

We say unafraid 'of' in English, so why does this sentence use við?

In Icelandic, the adjective hræddur and its negative form óhræddur are fixed to the preposition við. You have to learn them together as a set phrase. You can imagine it as being unafraid 'towards' or 'when faced with' the cat.

Why is the cat (köttinn) in the accusative case?

The preposition við decides the case of the noun that follows it. When used in the phrase óhræddur við (unafraid of), it always forces the following noun into the accusative case. This changes the nominative kötturinn to the accusative köttinn.

Why does okkar (our) stay the same instead of matching the accusative masculine form of köttinn?

The word okkar is actually the genitive form of the pronoun við (we). Because it is a personal pronoun acting as a possessive, it is frozen in the genitive case to show ownership and never changes its ending to match the noun it describes.