Word
Er lykillinn í vasa?
Meaning
Is the key in a pocket?
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Er lykillinn í vasa?
vera
to be
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
lykillinn
the key
vasinn
the pocket
Questions & Answers about Er lykillinn í vasa?
Why is the word for pocket spelled vasa instead of vasi here?
Because it comes after the preposition í (in) describing a static location. When í describes where something is resting, the noun that follows must be in the dative case. The dictionary form of this noun is vasi, and its dative form changes to vasa.
Why doesn't vasa have a word for "a" in front of it?
Icelandic doesn't have an indefinite article (a direct translation for "a" or "an"). To say "a pocket", you simply use the bare noun vasa. In contrast, "the key" is lykillinn, which has the definite article -inn attached directly to the end of the word lykill.
How do we know í means "in" rather than "into"?
The grammar case gives it away! The preposition í forces the following noun into the dative case when it describes a static location, meaning "in". If you were putting the key "into" a pocket, that involves active motion towards a new destination, which would trigger the accusative case instead.
Why does the sentence begin with the verb Er?
Just like in English, you form a simple yes/no question by moving the verb to the front of the sentence. If you wanted to make the statement "The key is in a pocket," you would swap the first two words to say Lykillinn er í vasa.