Breakdown of Ha? Ég heyrði ekki neitt.
ég
I
ekki
not
heyra
to hear
neinn
any (in negative sentences)
ha
huh?, what? (colloquial)
Questions & Answers about Ha? Ég heyrði ekki neitt.
Why does the sentence use ekki neitt? Isn't that a double negative?
In Icelandic, ekki neitt translates literally to "not anything." While standard English avoids double negatives, using ekki (not) alongside neitt (anything) is the perfectly standard, grammatically correct way to say "nothing" in this kind of sentence. Neitt is the neuter form of the pronoun neinn (any/none).
Could I use hlustaði instead of heyrði here?
No, because they mean different things, just like their English equivalents. Að heyra means "to hear" (perceiving a sound passively), while að hlusta means "to listen" (making an active effort to hear). Since you are explaining that no sound reached your ears, heyrði is the correct verb.
What case is neitt in, and why?
It is in the accusative case. The verb að heyra (to hear) requires the object being heard to take the accusative case. Because "anything" in this sentence is a general, abstract concept rather than a specific masculine or feminine noun, it takes the neuter singular form neitt.
How exactly is Ha used in spoken Icelandic?
Ha is incredibly common in everyday speech. Just like "Huh?" or "What?" in English, it is the default, informal way to ask someone to repeat themselves if you didn't catch what they just said. You will hear it constantly in casual conversation.
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