Breakdown of Auk þess er húsið of lítið.
vera
to be
húsið
the house
lítill
small / a little (small amount)
of
too
auk þess
in addition
Questions & Answers about Auk þess er húsið of lítið.
Why does the verb er come before the subject húsið?
Why is the pronoun þess used here instead of það?
The preposition auk (besides or in addition to) requires the word following it to be in the genitive case. Þess is the genitive form of það, so auk þess literally means besides that.
Why is the adjective lítið used instead of lítill?
Adjectives must match the gender, number, and case of the noun they describe. Húsið (the house) is a neuter noun in the singular nominative case, so the adjective takes the matching neuter form lítið.
Is the word of related to the English word with the same spelling?
No, they just look identical. In Icelandic, when of is placed before an adjective like lítið, it is an adverb meaning too or excessively.
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