Breakdown of Strákurinn klæddi sig sem uppvakning og notaði mikla förðun.
og
and
strákurinn
the boy
nota
to use
klæða
to dress
sig
himself/herself/themselves (acc)
mikill
great, much (adjective: snjórinn er mikill)
sem
as (in the role of)
uppvakningurinn
the zombie
förðunin
the makeup
Questions & Answers about Strákurinn klæddi sig sem uppvakning og notaði mikla förðun.
Why is uppvakning in the accusative case here instead of the nominative?
This highlights the role of sem (as). The word after sem must agree in case with the noun or pronoun it refers to. Here, the boy is dressing himself (sig). Because sig is in the accusative case, the role he assumes (uppvakningur) must also be in the accusative, becoming uppvakning.
Why do we need the reflexive pronoun sig after klæddi?
In English, we can simply say the boy dressed, but in Icelandic, the verb klæða (to dress) requires a direct object. You have to specify who gets dressed. Since he is dressing himself, we use the accusative reflexive pronoun sig.
Why is the phrase mikla förðun rather than mikinn förðun?
The verb nota (to use) takes the accusative case. The noun förðun (makeup) is feminine, which is a handy rule to remember: almost all Icelandic nouns ending in -un are feminine. Therefore, the adjective mikill (a lot) must take the feminine accusative form, which is mikla.
What is the literal meaning behind the word uppvakningur (zombie)?
It is derived from the phrasal verb að vekja upp, which means to wake someone up or to raise the dead. So an uppvakningur is literally an up-woken one or someone raised from the grave.
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