Questions & Answers about Eru þessi glös hrein?
Doesn't þessi usually mean 'this' in the singular? Why does it mean 'these' here?
Good catch! While þessi is used for 'this' in the masculine and feminine singular, it is also the correct form for 'these' in the neuter plural (for both nominative and accusative cases). Because glös (glasses) is a neuter plural noun, we use þessi.
The singular word for glass is glas. Why does the 'a' change to 'ö' in the plural glös?
Why is the adjective 'clean' written as hrein and not hreint or hreinir?
Adjectives must always match the noun they describe in gender, number, and case. Since glös is a neuter plural noun in the nominative case, the dictionary form of the adjective hreinn (clean) changes into its neuter plural nominative form, which is hrein.
Why does the sentence start with Eru?
Just like in English, Icelandic creates a simple yes/no question by swapping the subject and the verb. Eru is the plural form of the verb vera (to be) for 'they are'. We put it at the front of the sentence to ask if the plural subject, þessi glös (these glasses), are clean.
Learn Eru þessi glös hrein and more in Icelandic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free