Verbs Like vita and kunna

Level 4

Hún veit, not veitur. A small group of very common verbs have present forms that look like past forms.

How It Works

Why they look odd. Long ago, these verbs used an old past-tense form with a present meaning, and later they built a new past with a regular ending. English has the same kind of verb: can, may and shall have no -s in he can. Icelandic grammar books call them núþálegar sagnir.

The present. The singular has no -ur ending and a different vowel from the infinitive. The plural is regular. The order is ég, þú, hann/hún, then við, þið, þau:

  • vita (know a fact): veit, veist, veit; vitum, vitið, vita
  • eiga (own, have): á, átt, á; eigum, eigið, eiga
  • kunna (know how): kann, kannt, kann; kunnum, kunnið, kunna
  • mega (may): má, mátt, má; megum, megið, mega
  • þurfa (need): þarf, þarft, þarf; þurfum, þurfið, þurfa
  • muna (remember): man, manst, man; munum, munið, muna
  • munu (will): mun, munt, mun; munum, munuð, munu
  • skulu (shall): skal, skalt, skal; skulum, skuluð, skulu

Notice that munu and skulu end in -uð in the þið form.

The past. The past looks like a regular past with -ði, -di or -ti, often with another stem change: vissi, átti, kunni, mátti, þurfti, mundi (see var, hafði, átti, vissi and past tense of modal verbs). munu and skulu have past forms only in the subjunctive: mundi/myndi and skyldi (see myndi).

Look-alikes. vilja also has no -ur (ég vil, þú vilt, hún vill), but it is usually listed as irregular instead. geta is not in the group: ég get, but þú getur and hún getur. A rare, literary member is unna (love): ég ann þér.

How they are used. mega, munu and skulu take an infinitive without að: Má ég koma inn? þurfa and eiga take að: Ég þarf að fara, Þú átt að hvíla þig. kunna takes að for a skill: Kanntu að synda? For their meanings, see vita, þekkja and kunna, þurfa að, eiga að, munu and skulu.

Examples (6)

  1. Hún veit alltaf svarið.

    She always knows the answer.

    hún veit: no -ur in the singular.

  2. Hann kann þrjú tungumál.

    He knows three languages.

  3. Þú mátt setjast hérna.

    You may sit here.

    The þú form of mega ends in -t: mátt.

  4. Þarftu hjálp?

    Do you need help?

    Word by Word: Need-you help?

  5. Manstu eftir mér?

    Do you remember me?

    Word by Word: Remember-you after me?

  6. Ég vissi það ekki.

    I didn’t know that.

    The past of vita is vissi.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding -ur in the singular, as with most verbs.

    Hún veitur það.
    Hún veit það.

    These verbs have no -ur in the singular: hún veit, hann kann, hún á, hann þarf.

  • Using the ég form for þú.

    Þú veit það.
    Þú veist það.

    The þú form ends in -t or -st: þú veist, þú kannt, þú átt, þú manst.

  • Making a past tense with -aði.

    Ég vitaði það ekki.
    Ég vissi það ekki.

    The past of vita is vissi. Learn the past forms of this group one by one: vissi, átti, kunni, mátti, þurfti, mundi.

How It Connects

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Verbs Like vita and kunnaLevel 4

Learn This First

Preterite-present verbs build on muna, mega and þurfa.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

vitakunnaveitveistvissiáttieigamegaþurfamunamunuskulu