That-Clauses (að)

Level 2

að means that: Ég veit að þú ert þreytt (I know that you're tired). Keep it in the sentence.

How It Works

The pattern. verb + að + a full clause:

  • Ég veit að þú ert þreytt (I know you're tired)
  • Ég sé að það er opið (I see that it's open)
  • Heyrðirðu að hún er flutt til Akureyrar? (Did you hear that she has moved to Akureyri?)

Don't drop að. English says I know you're tired. Icelandic says Ég veit að þú ert þreytt. You may hear að dropped in quick speech after held (I think), but keep it when you speak and write.

Word order. The subject comes right after að, then the verb: að þú ert, not að ert þú. The verb comes before ekki: Ég veit að hann kemur ekki (subordinate clause word order).

Mood. After vita and sjá, the verb is in the normal indicative: Ég veit að þú ert þreytt. After verbs of saying, thinking and hoping, like segja, halda and vona, the verb is usually in the subjunctive: Hún segir að hún sé þreytt. You will learn this in reported speech and the present subjunctive.

Three words spelled að. að also marks the infinitive (að + infinitive: að tala) and is a preposition meaning to, toward. For whether-questions, use hvort instead: Veistu hvort búðin er opin?

Examples (5)

  1. Ég veit að þú ert þreytt.

    I know you're tired.

    Word by Word: I know that you are tired.

    þreytt is feminine, so this is said to a woman. To a man it is þreyttur.

  2. Ég sé að það er opið.

    I see that it's open.

    Word by Word: I see that it is open.

  3. Heyrðirðu að hún er flutt til Akureyrar?

    Did you hear that she has moved to Akureyri?

    Word by Word: Heard-you that she is moved to Akureyri?

  4. Hún segir að hún sé þreytt.

    She says she is tired.

    Word by Word: She says that she be tired.

    After segja the verb is usually subjunctive: sé instead of er.

  5. Ég vissi ekki að þú talaðir íslensku.

    I didn't know you spoke Icelandic.

    Word by Word: I knew not that you spoke Icelandic.

Common Mistakes

  • Leaving out að, as English often leaves out that.

    Ég veit þú ert þreytt.
    Ég veit að þú ert þreytt.

    Icelandic keeps að after vita, sjá, heyra and segja, even where English drops that. It is only left out now and then in quick speech after held (I think).

  • Putting the verb before the subject after að.

    Ég veit að ert þú þreytt.
    Ég veit að þú ert þreytt.

    In a clause after að, the subject comes first and then the verb.

How It Connects

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

That-Clauses (að)Level 2

Learn This First

That-clauses build on subordinate word order.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

aðvitasjáheyraekki