Word
Vegurinn er þrjátíu og þrír kílómetrar.
Meaning
The road is thirty-three kilometers.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Vegurinn er þrjátíu og þrír kílómetrar.
How do we form compound numbers like 33 in Icelandic?
Just like with 20, you combine the tens and the ones with the word og (and). So 33 is literally formed as "thirty and three" (þrjátíu og þrír).
Do both parts of the number þrjátíu og þrír change endings to match the noun?
No, only the ones digit changes. Tens like þrjátíu (30) or tuttugu (20) are "bare" numbers that never change their form. However, the numbers 1 through 4 always have to match the gender and case of the noun they count, which is why the second part of the number adapts to the noun.
Why is the ones digit þrír instead of þrjú or þrjár?
Þrír is the masculine nominative form. We must use it because the noun it counts, kílómetrar (kilometers), is masculine. If we were counting neuter nouns, we would say þrjátíu og þrjú, and for feminine nouns, þrjátíu og þrjár.
As a quick refresher, how is the word "the" added in vegurinn?
In Icelandic, "the" is usually attached to the end of the word as a suffix. The base word for "road" is vegur, which is a masculine noun. To say "the road", we add the masculine definite article suffix -inn, making it vegurinn.