Breakdown of Það er óviðunandi að hótelið hafi myglu.
vera
to be
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
hótelið
the hotel
að
that (conjunction)
hafa
to have
myglan
the mold
óviðunandi
unacceptable (intolerable)
Questions & Answers about Það er óviðunandi að hótelið hafi myglu.
Why is hafi used here instead of the regular present tense hefur?
The main clause Það er óviðunandi expresses a subjective value judgment. In Icelandic, expressing an opinion or judgment about a situation triggers the subjunctive mood in the following að clause. Because the sentence is in the present tense, we use the present subjunctive form hafi.
How does the word óviðunandi break down to mean "unacceptable"?
It is built around the verb una, which means to be happy or content with something, often used with the preposition við. Adding the present participle ending -andi creates viðunandi (acceptable or satisfactory). Finally, adding the negative prefix ó- gives us óviðunandi (unacceptable).
Why is the word for mold spelled myglu instead of mygla?
The dictionary form is the feminine noun mygla. Here, it is the direct object of the verb hafa (to have), which requires the accusative case. For weak feminine nouns ending in -a, the accusative form ends in -u, making it myglu.
Could I change the word order to put the að clause first?
Yes, you can say Að hótelið hafi myglu er óviðunandi. If you do this, you must drop the dummy pronoun Það, because the að clause is now acting directly as the subject at the beginning of the sentence.
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