Breakdown of Framhaldsskólinn er stærsti skólinn í bænum.
vera
to be
stór
big
skólinn
the school
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
bærinn
the town
framhaldsskólinn
the upper secondary school
Questions & Answers about Framhaldsskólinn er stærsti skólinn í bænum.
Why is the adjective stærsti used here instead of the dictionary form stærstur?
Because it modifies skólinn, which has the definite article attached to it (meaning "the school"). When an adjective describes a definite noun, you must use the weak form of the adjective. For a masculine superlative word, stærstur becomes stærsti.
Why is bænum in the dative case?
The preposition í can take either the accusative or the dative case. It takes the dative here because the sentence describes a static location (being situated in the town). If it described active movement (going into the town), it would take the accusative case, becoming bæinn.
What are the individual parts that make up the word framhaldsskólinn?
It is a compound of framhald (meaning continuation or sequel), a connecting -s-, and skólinn (the school). It literally translates to "the continuation school", which is the Icelandic term for an upper secondary school or high school.
Why is stærsti skólinn in the nominative case rather than an object case like the accusative?
The verb er comes from vera (to be). This verb does not take a direct object. Instead, it acts like an equals sign linking two things together. Because of this, the noun phrase that follows it remains in the nominative case, matching the subject framhaldsskólinn.
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