Breakdown of Strákarnir tapa leiknum ef þeir uppörva ekki hver annan.
strákurinn
the boy
ekki
not
þeir
they (m)
leikurinn
the game
ef
if
tapa
to lose (a game) (+ Dative)
hver annar
each other (of several)
uppörva
to encourage
Questions & Answers about Strákarnir tapa leiknum ef þeir uppörva ekki hver annan.
Why is the reciprocal pronoun hver annan split into two different cases here?
This is the split case rule for reciprocal pronouns in Icelandic. The first word, hver, reflects the case of the subject performing the action, which is nominative here (þeir). The second word, annan, takes the case required by the verb. Since the verb uppörva (to encourage) takes the accusative case, we use the accusative form annan.
The subject þeir is plural, so why are both words in hver annan in the singular form?
Even though the subject is plural (the boys), the reciprocal pronoun hver annar (each other) is always formed using singular words. You can think of it literally translating to 'each one encourages another one'. Therefore, both hver and annan stay in the singular masculine form to match the gender of strákarnir.
How do we know to use hver annan instead of hvor annan?
We use hver annan when referring to a group of three or more. If we knew there were exactly two boys, the sentence would have to use hvor annan. Because the sentence just says Strákarnir (The boys) without specifying that there are only two, it is standard to default to the group form hver annan.
Why is the word for 'the game' in the dative case (leiknum)?
The verb tapa (to lose) dictates the case of its object, and it requires the dative case. This is why the masculine noun leikurinn (the game, in the nominative) changes to its dative form leiknum.
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