Breakdown of Hún fór á grímuballið sem norn, en hann mætti sem galdramaður.
hún
she
hann
he
en
but
fara
to go
á
onto / on / in (static location) / on (a day of the week)
mæta
to show up
sem
as (in the role of)
grímuballið
the masquerade ball
nornin
the witch
galdramaðurinn
the wizard
Questions & Answers about Hún fór á grímuballið sem norn, en hann mætti sem galdramaður.
Why are both norn and galdramaður in the nominative case?
This is the core rule for using sem to mean "as a [role]". The noun after sem must agree in case with the noun it refers back to. Since norn describes the subject Hún (nominative), and galdramaður describes the subject hann (nominative), both take the nominative case.
Why does á trigger the accusative case in grímuballið rather than the dative?
The preposition á governs the accusative when it describes motion towards a destination. Because she is going to the ball (fara á), it takes the accusative. If the sentence was about what she did while already at the ball, á would take the dative case.
I learned that mæta means "to meet". Why is it translated as "showed up" here?
While mæta does mean "to meet" (usually taking the dative case for the person you meet), it is also the standard verb for "to attend," "to show up," or "to make an appearance" at an event, gathering, or even just at work.
How is the compound word grímuballið constructed?
It is made up of gríma (mask) and ball (dance/party), with the suffixed neuter definite article -ið. The first part uses the genitive singular form grímu- to link the words together.
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