Plural-Only Nouns (buxur, dyr)
Dyrnar eru opnar. (The door is open.) dyr is always plural, so the verb and the adjective are plural too.
How It Works
Common plural-only nouns.
- Feminine: buxur (trousers), dyr (door)
- Neuter: skæri (scissors), gleraugu (glasses), jól (Christmas), föt (clothes), hjón (married couple), laun (pay), mánaðamót (turn of the month)
- Masculine: tónleikar (concert), páskar (Easter)
They take plural articles and plural agreement: buxurnar, dyrnar, jólin, tónleikarnir. Gleðileg jól! (Merry Christmas!)
Counting them. einn, tveir, þrír, fjórir are replaced by special plural number words:
- Masculine: einir, tvennir, þrennir, fernir — einir tónleikar
- Feminine: einar, tvennar, þrennar, fernar — tvennar buxur
- Neuter: ein, tvenn, þrenn, fern — þrenn gleraugu
They decline like adjectives: Ég keypti tvennar buxur, með tvennum buxum. From five up, use the ordinary numbers: fimm buxur.
Pairs of things. The same number words can count pairs of ordinary nouns: tvenn stígvél means two pairs of boots.
Examples (6)
- Dyrnar eru opnar.
The door is open.
Word by Word: The doors are open.
- Ég keypti tvennar buxur í gær.
I bought two pairs of trousers yesterday.
Word by Word: I bought two(-sets) trousers yesterday.
- Hvar eru gleraugun mín?
Where are my glasses?
Word by Word: Where are the glasses my?
- Ég á bara ein gleraugu.
I only have one pair of glasses.
Word by Word: I own just one glasses.
ein is the neuter form, because gleraugu is neuter.
- Gleðileg jól!
Merry Christmas!
Word by Word: Joyful Christmas!
jól is neuter plural, so the adjective is gleðileg.
- Við fórum á tónleika í gærkvöldi.
We went to a concert last night.
Word by Word: We went on concerts in yesterday-evening.
Common Mistakes
Using a singular verb and article with dyr.
Dyrin er opin.Dyrnar eru opnar.dyr is a feminine plural-only noun. The article is -nar, and the verb and adjective are plural.
Counting a plural-only noun with the ordinary numbers.
Ég keypti tvær buxur í gær.Ég keypti tvennar buxur í gær.Standard Icelandic counts plural-only nouns with tvennir, tvennar, tvenn. tvennar buxur means two pairs of trousers.
Using the masculine singular einn.
Ég á bara einn gleraugu.Ég á bara ein gleraugu.gleraugu is neuter plural, so "one" is the neuter plural ein.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Plural-only nouns build on one to four in all cases.
Related Patterns
- Numbers One to Four
The ordinary numbers one to four, which these special forms replace.
Level 1 - Plural Nouns
An overview of plural endings in Icelandic.
Level 1 - Adjectives Agree With Nouns
Adjectives with these nouns are always plural: buxurnar eru stuttar.
Level 1 - Neuter Nouns in -a (auga)
gleraugu declines like augu: gleraugum, gleraugna.
Level 4
Words in This Pattern
Practice Plural-Only Nouns (buxur, dyr) in Bubblegum
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