Breakdown of Strákarnir voru of fljótir að dýfa penslinum í blekið.
vera
to be
strákurinn
the boy
að
to (infinitive marker)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
fljótur
fast (adjective)
of
too
pensillinn
the paintbrush
dýfa
to dip
blekið
the ink
Questions & Answers about Strákarnir voru of fljótir að dýfa penslinum í blekið.
Why is fljótir plural here, and how does this structure work?
The phrase uses the pattern fljótur að + infinitive to mean 'quick to do something'. Because fljótur is an adjective, it must agree with the subject in gender and number. Since the subject strákarnir is masculine plural, the adjective takes the masculine plural form fljótir.
Why is penslinum (the brush) in the dative case?
The verb dýfa (to dip) governs the dative case for the object being dipped. In Icelandic, verbs involving moving, throwing, or using an instrument often take the dative case, as if you are doing the action 'with' the object.
Why does í blekið use the accusative case instead of the dative?
The preposition í takes the accusative case when it indicates motion or direction into a place. If the brush were already resting statically in the ink, it would take the dative (í blekinu). Because the action involves moving the brush into the ink, blekið is accusative.
Why does the stem of penslinum look different from its dictionary form pensill?
This is a common vowel drop. For many masculine nouns ending in -ill, the second i drops out when case endings are added. So, in the dative case, pensill becomes pensli, and when you attach the definite article -num, you get penslinum.
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