telja hann vera

Object Plus Infinitive (Telja Hann Vera)

Level 5

Ég tel hann vera besta manninn í starfið. (I consider him the best man for the job.)

How It Works

The pattern. verb of thinking + accusative + infinitive:

  • Ég tel hann vera besta manninn í starfið. (I consider him the best man for the job.)
  • Þeir álitu hana hafa rétt fyrir sér. (They thought she was right.)
  • Ég tel þetta vera mikilvægt mál. (I consider this an important matter.)

Everything agrees in the accusative. The noun or pronoun is accusative, and so is an adjective or noun after vera: Hún telur mig vera duglegan. (She considers me hardworking.) Compare the nominative in Ég er duglegur.

No að and no finite verb. The infinitive comes straight after the accusative: tel hann vera. Choose one of two patterns and do not mix them: Ég tel hann vera góðan or Ég tel að hann sé góður.

Register. This pattern belongs to formal and written style. In speech people usually say Ég held að ... or Ég tel að ... with a clause in the subjunctive.

finnast is different. After mér finnst, the person is dative, and the noun and its adjective stay nominative: Mér finnst hann vera góður. Mér finnst ferðaþjónustan hafa breytt borginni. (I think tourism has changed the city.)

The passive. In the passive the infinitive stays, and the person becomes a nominative subject: Hann er talinn vera ríkur. See er talinn vera.

Examples (6)

  1. Ég tel hann vera besta manninn í starfið.

    I consider him the best man for the job.

    Word by Word: I consider him to-be best the-man into the-job.

    hann and besta manninn are both accusative.

  2. Þeir álitu hana hafa rétt fyrir sér.

    They thought she was right.

    Word by Word: They considered her to-have right for herself.

    hafa rétt fyrir sér means to be right.

  3. Hún telur mig vera duglegan.

    She considers me hardworking.

    Word by Word: She considers me to-be hardworking.

    duglegan is accusative to agree with mig. If the speaker is a woman, it is duglega.

  4. Ég tel þetta vera mikilvægt mál.

    I consider this an important matter.

    Word by Word: I consider this to-be important matter.

  5. Mér finnst hann vera góður.

    I think he is good.

    Word by Word: To-me finds he to-be good.

    After finnast, hann and góður stay nominative.

  6. Ég held að hún sé dugleg.

    I think she is hardworking.

    Word by Word: I hold that she is(subj) hardworking.

    The everyday way to say it: an að-clause with the subjunctive.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting að before the infinitive.

    Ég tel hann að vera besta manninn í starfið.
    Ég tel hann vera besta manninn í starfið.

    In this pattern the infinitive follows the accusative directly, without að.

  • Leaving the adjective after vera in the nominative.

    Ég tel hann vera góður.
    Ég tel hann vera góðan.

    The adjective agrees with hann, which is accusative after telja, so it must be góðan. The nominative góður belongs after mér finnst: Mér finnst hann vera góður.

  • Using a finite verb after the accusative.

    Ég tel hann er góður.
    Ég tel hann vera góðan.

    After the accusative you need the infinitive vera. If you want a finite verb, use an að-clause instead: Ég tel að hann sé góður.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

telja hann veraLevel 5Object Plus Infinitive (Telja Hann Vera)

Learn This First

Object plus infinitive builds on perception + infinitive and mér finnst.

Words in This Pattern

teljaálítaverafinnast