Breakdown of Ég vil ekki kaupa þessa kápu. Hún er ljót.
vera
to be
ég
I
hún
she
ekki
not
kaupa
to buy
vilja
to want (to will, be willing)
þessi
this (m/f)
kápan
the coat
ljótur
ugly
Questions & Answers about Ég vil ekki kaupa þessa kápu. Hún er ljót.
Why does the sentence use þessa instead of þessi?
Þessa is the feminine accusative form of þessi (this). It is in the accusative case because it is the direct object of the verb kaupa (to buy)—it is the thing being bought. Since the word for coat (kápa) is feminine, we use the feminine accusative form þessa.
Why is the word for coat spelled kápu here?
The dictionary form of the word is kápa. It is a feminine noun that ends in -a. When these types of nouns are used as a direct object (in the accusative case), the -a changes to a -u. Since we are buying the coat, kápa becomes kápu.
Why does the second sentence start with Hún (she) when talking about a coat?
In English, objects are always referred to as it. But in Icelandic, pronouns must match the grammatical gender of the noun they replace. Because kápa is a feminine noun, you must use the feminine pronoun hún (she) to refer back to it, even though it is a non-living object.
Why is the adjective ljót (ugly) without a -ur at the end?
Adjectives change their endings to match the gender of the noun they describe. The standard dictionary form is the masculine ljótur. Because it is describing the feminine noun kápa (referred to here as hún), it drops the masculine -ur ending and becomes the feminine form, ljót.
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