Questions & Answers about Lætur hún aldrei hundinn fara?
Why is the verb lætur instead of látur?
The dictionary form is láta (to let). Because it is a strong verb, its stem vowel changes in the singular present tense. The á changes to æ for the singular forms, giving us hún lætur (she lets). In the plural, it goes back to the original vowel, like in við látum (we let).
Why is the verb lætur at the very beginning of the sentence?
To ask a yes/no question in Icelandic, you simply swap the verb and the subject. Putting the verb lætur before the pronoun hún turns it into a question. Notice that Icelandic does not use a helper verb like 'does' to ask questions!
Why does it say hundinn and not hundurinn?
Hundinn is the direct object of the sentence, so it must be in the accusative case. The basic dictionary form for 'the dog' is hundurinn, but since the dog is the one being acted upon by the verb, the ending drops the 'ur' to become the accusative form hundinn.
Why is fara at the end of the sentence?
The verb láta (to let) often works with a second verb in the infinitive dictionary form, which is fara (to go) here. Just like in English, the second verb comes right after the object, following the exact same pattern: 'let' (lætur) + 'the dog' (hundinn) + 'go' (fara).
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