Questions & Answers about Hún elskar þá.
Why is "them" translated as þá in this sentence?
In Icelandic, the word for "them" changes depending on the gender of the people or things you are talking about. þá is the masculine plural form in the accusative case. You use it when "them" refers to an all-male group or a group of masculine nouns.
Why is it in the accusative case here?
The verb elska (to love) takes a direct object in the accusative case. The person doing the loving (hún) is the subject in the nominative case, and the people being loved (þá) are the object in the accusative case. The nominative masculine word for "they" is þeir, but it becomes þá when it acts as the object.
What if she loves a mixed group of men and women?
I have seen þá used before to mean "then". Is this the same word?
Yes! The word þá can mean either "then" (referring to time or a sequence) or "them" (the masculine accusative pronoun). You can easily tell which one it is by the context. Here, the verb elskar needs an object, so it has to mean "them".
Learn Hún elskar þá and more in Icelandic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free