Prepositions With the Accusative
í gegnum bæinn (through the town) and í kringum húsið (around the house): these prepositions always take the accusative.
How It Works
The group.
- um: about, around, during: bók um Ísland (a book about Iceland), um helgina (at the weekend). See um.
- (í) gegnum: through: Við gengum í gegnum skóginn.
- (í) kringum: around: Þau sátu í kringum borðið.
- umhverfis: around, all the way round. It is a little more formal: Hringvegurinn liggur umhverfis landið (The Ring Road goes around the country).
Still accusative when nothing moves. This is where these words differ from undir and yfir. A fence that stands still is still í kringum garðinn, never *í kringum garðinum.
With pronouns. Use the accusative pronouns: um mig, um þig, um hann, um hana. Hvað sagði hún um mig? (What did she say about me?)
Compare the prepositions that always take the dative and the genitive.
Examples (5)
- Við gengum í gegnum skóginn.
We walked through the forest.
Word by Word: We walked in through the forest.
- Það er girðing í kringum garðinn.
There is a fence around the garden.
Word by Word: It is fence in around the garden.
Nothing moves here, but kringum still takes the accusative: garðinn.
- Hvað ertu að gera um helgina?
What are you doing at the weekend?
Word by Word: What are-you to do about the weekend?
- Hún skrifaði bók um afa sinn.
She wrote a book about her grandfather.
Word by Word: She wrote book about grandfather her-own.
- Ég hjólaði umhverfis landið í sumar.
I cycled around the country this summer.
Word by Word: I cycled around the country in summer.
Common Mistakes
Switching to the dative for a location.
Það er girðing í kringum garðinum.Það er girðing í kringum garðinn.kringum always takes the accusative, even when nothing moves.
Using a dative pronoun after um.
Hvað sagði hún um mér?Hvað sagði hún um mig?um takes the accusative, so use mig, not mér.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Accusative prepositions build on um and við.
Related Patterns
- The Accusative (þolfall)
The case these prepositions always take.
Level 2 - Movement or Location With í and á
í and á switch between accusative and dative; these prepositions never do.
Level 2 - Prepositions With the Dative
The larger group that always takes the dative.
Level 3 - Prepositions With the Genitive
The group that always takes the genitive.
Level 3 - undir / yfirUnder and Over (Undir, Yfir)
Prepositions that take the accusative only for movement, and the dative for location.
Level 3
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Prepositions With the Accusative in Bubblegum
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