Masculine Nouns Like hestur
Many masculine nouns end in -ur, like hestur (horse). The -ur is only there in the nominative. The other cases have their own endings.
How It Works
The pattern
Forms in this order: Singular · Plural.
- Nominative: hestur · hestar
- Accusative: hest · hesta
- Dative: hesti · hestum
- Genitive: hests · hesta
Other everyday nouns follow it too: hundur (dog): hund, hundi, hunds; fiskur (fish): fisk, fiski, fisks; dagur (day).
Vowel changes in dagur
dagur has two small changes. The dative singular is degi, and the dative plural is dögum, because -um turns a stem a into ö. The other forms are regular: dag, dags, dagar, daga.
Things to watch
- A few nouns have no -i in the dative: matur (food) has mat in the accusative and the dative.
- Some nouns in -ur have a genitive in -ar instead of -s: vinur (friend) → vinar, matur → matar.
- Some -ur nouns have a plural in -ir, like vinir and gestir. Those are taught in Masculine Nouns With -ir Plurals.
Which form you need depends on the case. See The Four Cases for how each case is used.
Examples (6)
- Þetta er góður dagur.
This is a good day.
Word by Word: This is good day.
dagur is the subject, so it is in the nominative with -ur.
- Ég á hund.
I have a dog.
Word by Word: I own dog.
hund is the object of á, so it is in the accusative without -ur.
- Við borðuðum fisk í kvöldmat.
We had fish for dinner.
Word by Word: We ate fish in dinner.
fisk is the object, so it has no ending.
- Hún býr með hundi og tveimur hestum.
She lives with a dog and two horses.
Word by Word: She lives with dog and two horses.
með takes the dative: hundi in the singular, hestum in the plural.
- Á Íslandi eru margir hestar.
There are many horses in Iceland.
Word by Word: In Iceland are many horses.
hestar is the nominative plural.
- Eftir tvo daga förum við heim.
In two days, we are going home.
Word by Word: After two days go we home.
eftir with a time takes the accusative, so dagar becomes daga.
Common Mistakes
Keeping -ur when the noun is an object.
Ég sá hestur í gær.Ég sá hest í gær.-ur only belongs to the nominative. When the noun is an object, it goes into the accusative, which is the bare stem: hest.
Using the nominative plural after a preposition that takes the dative.
Hún býr með tveimur hestar.Hún býr með tveimur hestum.með takes the dative, and the dative plural always ends in -um: hestum, hundum, dögum.
Forgetting the vowel change in the dative of dagur.
Á þessum dagi var sól.Á þessum degi var sól.dagur has degi in the dative singular and dögum in the dative plural.
How It Connects
Learn This First
hestur nouns build on all four cases and plurals.
Related Patterns
- The Four Cases
This pattern shows the four cases on one common noun type.
Level 1 - Masculine Nouns Without This Ending: -ur (stóll, steinn)Masculine Nouns Without -ur
Nouns like bíll and steinn are the same class, but their nominative ends in -ll or -nn instead of -ur.
Level 2 - Masculine Nouns in -i
Masculine nouns in -i, like tími, are the other big masculine group.
Level 2 - Plural Ending for Masculine Nouns: -irMasculine Nouns with -ir Plurals
Some -ur nouns, like vinur and gestur, have a plural in -ir instead of -ar.
Level 3 - The Attached Article in All Cases
The attached article goes after these case endings: hestinn, hestinum, hestsins.
Level 2 - Vowel Change: a → öThe A-to-Ö Change
The ending -um changes a to ö, as in dögum.
Level 3
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Masculine Nouns Like hestur in Bubblegum
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