Neuter Nouns in -i (fyrirtæki)
fyrirtæki (company) → fyrirtæki (companies). The nominative singular and plural look the same.
How It Works
The forms.
- Singular: fyrirtæki, fyrirtæki, fyrirtæki, fyrirtækis. With the article: fyrirtækið, fyrirtækið, fyrirtækinu, fyrirtækisins.
- Plural: fyrirtæki, fyrirtæki, fyrirtækjum, fyrirtækja. With the article: fyrirtækin, fyrirtækin, fyrirtækjunum, fyrirtækjanna.
When there is a j. Look at the letter before the -i:
- After k or g: fyrirtæki → fyrirtækjum, ríki (state) → ríkjum, merki (sign) → merkjum, herbergi (room) → herbergjum, veski (wallet) → veskjum.
- After other letters: kvæði (poem) → kvæðum, kvæða; epli (apple) → eplum, epla; sæti (seat) → sætum, sæta.
A useful name. Bandaríkin (the United States) ends in ríkin, the plural of ríki with the article: í Bandaríkjunum (in the US), til Bandaríkjanna (to the US).
Not every noun in -i is neuter. tími and sími are masculine and have -a in the other cases. Check the gender with the article: fyrirtækið (neuter) but síminn (masculine).
Examples (6)
- Hún vinnur hjá stóru fyrirtæki.
She works for a big company.
Word by Word: She works at big company.
hjá takes the dative: stóru fyrirtæki.
- Hótelið er með fimmtíu herbergi.
The hotel has fifty rooms.
Word by Word: The hotel is with fifty rooms.
- Það eru stór rúm í herbergjunum.
There are big beds in the rooms.
Word by Word: It are big beds in the rooms.
The j appears because herbergi ends in -gi.
- Hann las kvæði eftir Jónas Hallgrímsson.
He read a poem by Jónas Hallgrímsson.
Word by Word: He read poem after Jónas Hallgrímsson.
- Ég keypti poka af eplum.
I bought a bag of apples.
Word by Word: I bought bag of apples.
eplum has no j, because the stem ends in l.
- Við flugum til Bandaríkjanna í sumar.
We flew to the United States this summer.
Word by Word: We flew to the United-States in summer.
Common Mistakes
Leaving out the j after k.
Hún hefur unnið hjá mörgum fyrirtækum.Hún hefur unnið hjá mörgum fyrirtækjum.fyrirtæki ends in -ki, so the dative plural has a j: fyrirtækjum.
Adding a j where the stem does not end in k or g.
Ég keypti poka af epljum.Ég keypti poka af eplum.epli ends in -li, not -ki or -gi, so there is no j: eplum.
How It Connects
Learn This First
fyrirtæki nouns build on hús nouns.
Related Patterns
- Neuter Nouns in -a (auga)
The other small neuter group, ending in -a: auga, augu.
Level 4 - Masculine Nouns in -i
Masculine nouns in -i, like tími, which decline differently.
Level 2 - The Attached Article in All Cases
How the attached article works with these nouns: fyrirtækið, fyrirtækinu.
Level 2 - Plural Nouns
An overview of plural endings in Icelandic.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice Neuter Nouns in -i (fyrirtæki) in Bubblegum
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