Breakdown of Afi þinn vinnur mikið.
mikið
a lot
vinna
to work (general labor, to do work)
þinn
your (sg.)
afinn
the grandfather
Questions & Answers about Afi þinn vinnur mikið.
Why does the word for 'your' come after 'grandfather'?
In Icelandic, possessive pronouns usually come after the noun they describe. Instead of saying 'your grandfather', you use the order 'grandfather your' (afi þinn).
Why do we use þinn instead of þín or þitt?
Possessive pronouns have to match the gender, number, and case of the noun they belong to. Because afi is a masculine singular noun in the subject position, the pronoun must also take the masculine singular form þinn.
I remember that nouns usually need a 'the' ending before a possessive pronoun. Why is it just afi and not afinn?
You are right that Icelandic normally adds the 'the' ending to a noun before a possessive, like bíllinn þinn for 'your car'. However, close family words like mamma, pabbi, amma, and afi are exceptions. You just use the base word without the 'the' ending when talking about your relatives.
Why does the verb vinnur end in -ur?
vinnur is the 'he/she/it' form of the verb vinna (to work) in the present tense. Since the subject of the sentence is afi þinn ('he'), the verb takes the -ur ending.
What kind of word is mikið here?