Past tense: strong verbs
How strong Icelandic verbs form the past by changing the root vowel (ablaut): fara -> fór.
I can use the past of common strong verbs (Ég fór til Akureyrar og sá hvali).
Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?
Ég fór til Akureyrar í gær.
I went to Akureyri yesterday.
Hún sá hvali á Húsavík.
She saw whales in Húsavík.
Þú komst of seint.
You came too late.
Við drukkum kaffi á kaffihúsinu.
We drank coffee at the café.
Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?
The Past of Strong Verbs
The most common verbs are strong: instead of a dental ending, they change the root vowel (ablaut), just like English sing-sang or German gehen-ging. You learn these as pairs.
| infinitive | past (ég/hann) | meaning |
|---|---|---|
| fara | fór | go |
| koma | kom | come |
| taka | tók | take |
| sjá | sá | see |
| gefa | gaf | give |
| drekka | drakk | drink |
Person endings then attach to the new stem: ég fór, þú fórst, hann fór, við fórum, þið fóruð, þeir fóru. The ég and hann forms are bare (fór), and þú adds -st (fórst).
Adding a weak dental ending to a strong verb (fara -> *faraði instead of fór). - Forgetting the -st on þú (þú fórst, not þú fór). - Marking gender instead of person, as in Russian/Ukrainian (the strong past is still person-marked: ég fór = hann fór).
Ég fór til Akureyrar í gær.
I went to Akureyri yesterday.
fara -> fór (vowel change a -> ó).
Hún sá hvali á Húsavík.
She saw whales in Húsavík.
sjá -> sá; ég sá = hún sá (no gender marking).
Þú komst of seint.
You came too late.
koma -> kom; þú adds -st: komst.
Við drukkum kaffi á kaffihúsinu.
We drank coffee at the café.
drekka -> drakk; plural við drukkum.
Practice in course
Apply this grammar in A2 course exercises
Frequently asked questions
- When is Þátíð sterkra sagna used?
- The most common verbs are strong : instead of a dental ending, they change the root vowel (ablaut), just like English sing-sang or German gehen-ging . You learn these as pairs.
- How is Þátíð sterkra sagna formed?
- Person endings then attach to the new stem: ég fór, þú fórst, hann fór, við fórum, þið fóruð, þeir fóru . The ég and hann forms are bare (fór), and þú adds -st (fórst).
- What are common mistakes with Þátíð sterkra sagna?
- Adding a weak dental ending to a strong verb (fara -> *faraði instead of fór). - Forgetting the -st on þú (þú fórst, not þú fór). - Marking gender instead of person, as in Russian/Ukrainian (the strong past is still person-marked: ég fór = hann fór).