Breakdown of Hópur geita er að borða grænmetið.
vera
to be
borða
to eat
að
to (infinitive marker)
hópurinn
the group
grænmetið
the vegetables
geitin
the goat
Questions & Answers about Hópur geita er að borða grænmetið.
Why is there no word for "of" in hópur geita?
In Icelandic, the idea of "of" for possession or quantity is built right into the noun using the genitive case. Because geita is in the genitive plural, it automatically means "of goats" without needing an extra preposition.
How is the genitive plural formed for geit here?
If there are multiple goats, why is the verb singular (er instead of eru)?
The grammatical subject of the sentence is the singular word hópur (a group). The goats merely describe the group. Because the subject is singular, the verb must also be singular (er).
English says "the vegetables" in the plural. Why does grænmetið look singular?
The Icelandic word grænmeti is an uncountable neuter noun. Just like the English word "equipment," it only exists in the singular form. Here, it simply has the singular neuter definite article -ð attached to it.
Why is grænmetið in the accusative case?
The verb að borða (to eat) requires its object to be in the accusative case. For neuter nouns like grænmeti, the accusative form is identical to the nominative form, so the word does not change its spelling.
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