Word
Hvaða keppandi er fljótastur í kapphlaupinu?
Meaning
Which competitor is fastest in the race?
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Hvaða keppandi er fljótastur í kapphlaupinu?
vera
to be
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
hvaða
which, what
fljótur
fast (adjective)
Questions & Answers about Hvaða keppandi er fljótastur í kapphlaupinu?
Why does the word for "fastest" end in -astur here?
Fljótastur is the superlative form of the adjective fljótur (fast). Because it is describing keppandi (competitor), which is a masculine noun in the nominative case, the adjective must match it. In the strong declension, the masculine nominative superlative ending is -astur.
What gender is the noun keppandi, and how can we tell?
It is a masculine noun. In Icelandic, nouns ending in -andi are usually formed from verbs to describe a person doing an action (similar to adding "-er" in English). Since að keppa means "to compete," a keppandi is a competitor. These -andi nouns are always masculine, which is why we must use the masculine adjective form fljótastur.
Why is kapphlaupinu in the dative case?
The preposition í (in) governs the dative case when it describes a static location or being part of an ongoing event (like a race). Kapphlaup (race) is a neuter noun, and adding the dative neuter definite article -inu gives us í kapphlaupinu (in the race).
Does the question word hvaða change its ending to match the masculine noun keppandi?
No, it doesn't. Unlike most adjectives and pronouns in Icelandic, hvaða (which/what) is indeclinable. It never changes its form, regardless of the gender, number, or case of the noun that follows it.