Breakdown of Hann dregur strenginn nær andlitinu.
hann
he
draga
to draw (pull, drag)
andlitið
the face
nær
nearer, closer
strengurinn
the string
Questions & Answers about Hann dregur strenginn nær andlitinu.
Why is there no word for 'to' after nær?
The comparative word nær (closer) governs the dative case directly. You don't need an extra preposition like að or til here; just putting the target noun andlitinu in the bare dative case is enough to mean 'closer to the face'.
The English translation says 'his face', but the Icelandic sentence just uses andlitinu. Why is there no word for 'his'?
Icelandic usually drops possessive pronouns (like hans) for body parts when it is obvious from the context whose body part is being talked about. Instead, you simply add the definite article to the noun, making it andlitinu (the face).
Why are two different cases used for the nouns strenginn and andlitinu?
They are governed by different words. The verb draga (to pull) takes a direct object in the accusative case, so we get strenginn. Meanwhile, the spatial comparative nær strictly forces the noun immediately following it into the dative case, giving us andlitinu.
What is the base form of the word nær?
The base form (the positive degree) is nærri (near). It changes to nær (nearer/closer) in the comparative, and næst (nearest/closest) in the superlative. All of these forms can govern a direct object in the dative case.
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