Breakdown of Veistu hvaða leyndardómur veldur þessum valkvíða?
þú
you
þessi
this (m/f)
vita
to know (a fact, information)
hvaða
which, what
valda
to cause
leyndardómurinn
the mystery
valkvíðinn
the choice anxiety
Questions & Answers about Veistu hvaða leyndardómur veldur þessum valkvíða?
Why is þessum valkvíða in the dative case?
It is the object of the verb valda (to cause). In Icelandic, valda strongly governs the dative case, meaning the thing being caused must always take the dative.
How is the compound noun valkvíða formed and declined?
It is made up of val (choice) and kvíði (anxiety). Kvíði is a weak masculine noun, meaning it ends in -i in the nominative, but changes to -a in the accusative, dative, and genitive cases. Since it's dative here, it becomes valkvíða.
Why doesn't hvaða change endings to match the masculine nominative noun leyndardómur?
Because hvaða (what/which) is an indeclinable word. Unlike most adjectives and pronouns in Icelandic, it never changes form, regardless of the gender, number, or case of the noun it modifies.
Since this lesson covers annar hvor (either / one of two), how would I answer this by saying "Either mystery causes it"?
Because leyndardómur is a masculine noun acting as the subject, you need the masculine nominative form. You would say Annar hvor leyndardómurinn veldur því. Notice that the noun gets the attached definite article (-inn) when paired with annar hvor.
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