very cold

may be prefixed to almost every adjective and adverb in an intensive sense, very, extremely.

* * *

may in old writers be prefixed to almost every adjective and adverb in an intensive sense, like Engl. very, Lat. per-, Gr. οια-, ζα-. In common talk and modern writings it is rare (except after a negative), and denotes something below the average, viz. tolerably, pretty well, not very well; but in the Sagas, something capital, exceeding. In high style it may perhaps be used in the old sense, e. g. allfagrt ljós oss birtist brátt, a transl. of the Ambrosian hymn, Aurora lucis rutilat. The instances in old writers are nearly endless, e. g. all-annt, n. adj. very eager, Fms. ii. 41; ironically, 150. all-apr, adj. very sore, very harsh, v. apr. all-auðsóttligt, n. adj. very easy, Fs. 40. all-auðveldliga, adv. very easily, Fms. iv. 129. all-auðveldligr, adj. very easy, Fms. v. 331. all-auðveldr, adj. id., Fbr. 158: neut. as adv., Hkr. ii. 76. all-ágætr, adj. very famous, Fms. ii. 76. all-áhyggjusamliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very careful, Fms. vi. 184. all-ákafliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very hot, impetuous, Hkr. i. 234, ii. 32. all-ákaft, adj. very fast, Nj. 196. all-áræðiliga, adv. very likely, Fær. 183. all-áræðislítill, adj. very timid, Fms. vi. 217. all-ástúðligt, n. adj. very hearty, intimate, Fms. ii. 20. all-banvænn, adj. very likely to prove mortal, Orkn. 148. all-beinn, adj. very hospitable, Fms. ii. 84, Eb. 286: neut. as adv., Fær. 259. all-beiskr, adj. very harsh, bitter, Sturl. iii. 167. all-bert, n. adj. very manifest, Lex. Poët. all-bitr, adj. very biting, sharp, Sks. 548. all-bitrligr, adj. of a very sharp appearance, Vígl. 20. all-bjartr, adj. very bright, Fms. viii. 361. all-bjúgr, adj. very much bent, curved, Ölkofr. 39. all-blár, adj. very blue, Glúm. 394. all-blíðliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very blithely, kindly, Fær. 132. all-blíðr, adj. very mild, amiable, Sd. 158, Fms. i. 202. all-bráðgörr, adj. very soon mature, Eb. 16. all-bráðliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very hastily, Orkn. 72. all-bráðr, adj. very hot-headed, Njarð. 370: neut. as adv. very soon, Fms. xi. 51: dat. pl. all-bráðum, as adv. very suddenly, 139. all-bros-ligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very funny, laughable, Fms. iii. 113. all-dasigr, adj. very sluggish, Lex. Poët. all-digr, adj. very big, stout; metaph. puffed up, Nj. 236. all-djarfliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very boldly, Fms. ii. 313, Orkn. 102. all-djúpsettr, adj. very deep, thoughtful, Bret. 158. all-drengiliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very bold, gallant, Lv. 110. all-dræmt, n. adj. very boastfully, from dramb, superbia, (the modern word is dræmt = slowly, sluggishly); þeir létu a. yfir sér, boasted, Sturl. ii. 56. MS. Mus. Brit. 1127; Cod. A. M. has allvænt, prob. wrongly. all-dyggr, adj. very doughty, Lex. Poët. all-dýrr, adj. very dear, Fms. iii. 159. all-eiguligr, adj. very worth having, Sd. 146. all-eina (theol.), á Guð alleina (a hymn), alone: Hkr. iii. 339 (in a spurious chapter). all-einarðliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very sincere, candid, open, Ld. 334. all-eldiligr and -elliligr, adj. of a very aged appearance, Fms. iii. 125. all-fagr, adj. very bright, fair, Orkn. 296 old Ed.: neut. as adv. very fairly, Sturl. i. 72. all-fast, n. adj. very firmly, steadfastly, Eb. 290, Fær. 259. all-fastorðr, adj. very ‘wordfast,’ very true to his word, Fms. vii. 120. all-fálátr, adj. very taciturn, close, Fas. iii. 408. all-fáliga, adv. on very cold terms, Sturl. iii. 298. all-fámáligr, adj. very close, of very few words, Fms. iii. 85, iv. 366. all-fámennr, adj. followed by very few people, Sturl. ii. 122, Magn. 386. all-far, adj. very few, Eg. 512, Ld. 272, Ísl. ii. 356: neut. on very cold terms, Fms. xi. 55. all-fáræðinn, adj. of very few words, Fms. iv. 312. all-feginn, adj. very ‘fain,’ glad, Eg. 240, Ld. 330. all-feginsamliga, adv. very ‘fain,’ gladly, Eg. 27. all-feigligr, adj. having the mark of death very plain on one’s face, v. feigr, Sturl. iii. 234. all-feitr, adj. very fat, Fms. x. 303. all-ferliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very rudely, Fms. iv. 263. all-fémikill, adj. very costly, Ld. 298. all-fjarri, adv. very far, far from, metaph., Hkr. ii. 246; eigi a., not improper, Fbr. 15. all-fjartekit, part. very far-fetched, Skálda 166. all-fjölgan, adj. acc. very numerous (does not exist in nom.), Sks. 138 A. all-fjölkunnigr, adj. very deeply versed in sorcery, Fms. ii. 175, Fas. i. 412. all-fjölmeðr and -mennr, adj. followed, attended by very many people, much frequented, Eg. 724, 188, Hkr. i. 215: n. sing. in very great numbers, Fms. i. 36. all-fjölrætt, n. adj. very heedful, much talked of, Nj. 109. all-forsjáll, adj. very prudent, Hom. 115. all-framr, adj. very famous, Lex. Poët.; very far forward, Grett. 161 A. all-frekliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very daringly, impudently, Fas. i. 24. all-frekr, adj. too eager, too daring, Fms. vii. 164. all-friðliga, adv. in very great peace, Lex. Poët. all-fríðr, adj. very beautiful, Eg. 23, Hkr. i. 225, ii. 354, Fms. i. 2. all-frjáls, adj. very free, independent, v. alfrjáls. all-fróðligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very wise, learned, Sks. 306 B. all-fróðr, adj. very learned, Sks. 30. all-frægr, adj. very famous, Fms. ii. 324, Hkr. i. 232, ii. 187, Ld. 122. all-frækiliga, adv. and -ligr, adj., and all-frækn, adj. and -liga, adv. very bold, boldly, Ísl. ii. 267, Hkr. i. 239, Fms. i. 121. all-fúss, adj. and -liga, adv. very eager, eagerly, Eg. 488, Fms. xi. 89. all-fýsiligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very desirable, Eg. 19, 468. all-fölr, adj. very pale, Lex. Poët. all-gagnsamr, adj. very profitable, gainful, Ísl. ii. 56. all-gamall, adj. very old, Hkr. i. 34. all-gegniliga and -gegnliga, adv. very fittingly, Sturl. ii. 63. all-gemsmikill, adj. very wanton, frolicsome, Sturl. ii. 57. all-gerla and -görviligr, v. -görla, -görviligr. all-gestrisinn, adj. very hospitable, Háv. 40. all-geysilegr, adj. and -liga, adv. very impetuous, Fms. x. 81. all-gildliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. with a very grand air, Grett. 121. all-gildr, adj. very grand, Lex. Poët. all-giptusam-liga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very lucky, Fms. x. 53. all-glaðliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very joyfully, joyful, Fms. iii. 143, Lv. 55. all-glaðr, adj. very joyful, Eg. 163, Ld. 176. all-gleymr, adj. very gleeful, mirthful, in high spirits, [glaumr], verða a. við e-t, Sturl. iii. 152, Eb. 36. all-glæsiliga, adj. and -ligr, adv. very shiny, Eb. 34, Fas. iii. 626, Fms. ix. 430. all-glöggsær, adj. very transparent, dearly visible, metaph., þorf. Karl. 380. all-glöggt, n. adj. very exactly, Hkr. iii. 253, Fas. iii. 13. all-góðmannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very kindly, kind, Mag. 6. all-góðr, adj. very good, Nj. 222, Eg. 36, 198. all-greiðliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very easy, easily, Eb. 268: neut. as adv., Eb. l. c. all-grimmliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very grimly, fiercely, Fas. iii. 414. all-grimmr, adj. very cruel, fierce, Hkr. iii. 167. all-grun-samliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very suspiciously, Ísl. ii. 364. all-göfugr, adj. very distinguished, Eg. 598, Bs. i. 60. all-görla, adv. very clearly, precisely, Hkr. iii. 133, Fms. xi. 15. all-görviligr, adj. very stout, manly, Fms. ii. 28. all-hagstæðr, adj. with a very fair wind, Sturl. iii. 109. all-harðligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very hard, stern, Fas. i. 382. all-harðr, adj. very hard, stern, Fms. i. 177: n. sing. severely, Nj. 165, Grág. i. 261. all-háskasamligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very hazardous, Fms. v. 135. all-heiðinn, adj. quite heathen, Fs. 89 (in a verse). all-heilagr, adj. very sacred, Lex. Poët. all-heimskliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very foolish, frantic, Hkr. ii. 190, Fas. iii. 293. all-heimskr, adj. very silly, stupid, Eg. 376, Grett. 159. all-heppinn, adj. very lucky, happy, Lex. Poët. all-herðimikill, adj. very broad-shouldered, Eg. 305. all-hermannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very martial, Fms. xi. 233. all-hjaldrjúgr, adj. very gossipping, chattering, Lv. 57: neut. as adv., Vápn. 10. all-hógliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very gently, Fms. xi. 240, vi. 274. all-hóleitr and -háleitr, adj. very sublime, Hom. 23. all-hór and -hár, adj. very high, tall, v. -hár. all-hratt, n. adj. in all speed, Lex. Poët. all-hraustliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very bravely, Fms. viii. 289, Eb. 34. all-hraustr, adj. very valiant, Fms. viii. 267. all-hreystimannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very valiantly, Fms. xi. 95. all-hrumliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very infirmly from age, Fas. ii. 91. all-hræddr, adj. very much afraid, Fbr. 94. all-hræðinn, adj. very timid, Fms. vi. 155. all-huml;mgsjúkr, adj. very grieved, heart-sick, Hkr. i. 243, Fms. vi. 133. all-hvass, adj. of the wind, blowing very sharp, Fms. ix. 20, Lex. Poët. all-hyggi-ligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very carefully, Fas. iii. 610. all-hýrliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very blandly, with a very bright face, Fas. iii. 636. all-hæðiligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very ridiculous, Finnb. 312. all-hældreginn, adj. walking very much on one’s heels, dragging the heels very much in walking, of an aged or beggarly person, Band. 9. all-hœgliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very softly, meekly, Fms. xi. 389. all-hœlinn, adj. very bragging, Lex. Poët. all-iðinn, adj. very diligent, laborious, Bs. i. 278. all-illa, adv. and -illr, adj. very badly, bad, wicked, Nj. 242, cp. ilia; ill-willed, Eg. 542: compar., vera allver um, to be worse off, Nj. 221 (Ed. allvant); angry, Lv. 145; disgraceful, Eg. 237; unfortunate, Sturl. ii. 47. all-jafnlyndr, adj. very calm, even-tempered, Fms. vi. 287. all-kaldr, adj. very cold, Vápn. 21. all-kappsamliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. with very much zeal, liberally, Hkr. i. 271; veita a., of hospitality, Ld. 292; mæla a., frankly, peremptorily, 296. all-kappsamr, adj. very eager, vehement, Eg. 187. all-karlmannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very manfully, Fms. x. 141. all-kaupmannliga, adv. in a very businesslike, tradesmanlike way, Fms. v.255. all-kátligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very funny, Grett. 112. all-kátr, adj. very joyful, Nj. 18, Eg. 44, 332. all-keppinn, adj. very snappish, Lex. Poët. all-kerskiligr and -keskiligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very sarcastic, biting, Sturl. ii. 196. all-klókr, adj. very shrewd, Hkr. iii. 317. all-knáliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very stoutly, vigorously, Rd. 312. all-kostgæflliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very earnestly, in a very painstaking way, Stj. all-kostigr, adj. very excellent, Lex. Poët. all-kviklatr, adj. very quick, lively, Ld. 270. all-kynliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very strangely, strange, Ísl. ii. 58, Fms. ii. 227, Grett. 160. all-kyrrligr, adj. very quiet, tranquil, Háv. 49. all-kærr, adj. very dear, beloved, Eg. 139, Fms. i. 48; very fond of, Hkr. i. 194: neut., Eg. 116, of mutual love. all-langr, adj. very long, Háv. 49. all-laust, n. adj. very loosely, Fms. xi. 103. all-lágr, adj. very low, short of stature, Fbr. 68. all-lengi, adv. very long, K. Þ. K. 158. all-léttbrúnn, adj. of very brightened, cheerful countenance, Ld. 94. all-léttiliga, adv. very lightly, Fas. iii. 612. all-léttmælt, n. adj., vera a. um e-t, to speak in a very lively way, Fms. iv. 261. all-léttr, adj. very light (in weight), Fas. iii. 487. all-líkliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. in very agreeable, courteous terms, Fas. i. 84. all-likligr, adj. very likely, Fas. ii. 247, Sks. 669. all-líkr, adj. very like, Fas. iii. 579, Sd. 160, Korm. 142. all-lítilfjörligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very puny, prop. having little life in one, Háv. 54. all-lítill, adj. very little, Fær. 268: n. sing. all-lítt, as adv. very little, Nj. 108, 130, Korm. 172; poorly, Grett. 116. all-lyginn, adj. very given to lying, Fbr. 157. all-makligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very deserving, fitting, Sturl. iii. 127, Bjarn. 22. all-mann-fátt, n. adj. with very few people, Gísl. 31. all-mannhættr, adj. very dangerous, Fas. iii. 34. all-mannskæðr, adj. very full of manskathe, very murderous, Fms. ii. 512. all-mannæenligr, adj. a very promising man, Fms. iv. 254. all-mannvænn, adj. a man of very great promise, Hkr. ii. 182. all-margliga, adv. very affably, Sturl. iii. 27. all-margmæltr, part. very talkative, Sturl. ii. 179. all-margr, adj. very numerous, pl. very many, Nj. 32, Grág. ii. 176, Sks. 328, Gþl. 329. all-margrætt, n. adj. part. very much spoken of, Fms. viii. 275. all-málugr, adj. very loquacious, Hkr. iii. 152, 655 xi. 2. all-máttfarinn, adj. very much worn out, with very little strength left, Fas. ii. 356. all-máttlítill, adj. very weak, Fms. i. 159. all-meginlauss, adj. very void of strength, Fms. xi. 103. all-mikilfengligr, adj. very high and mighty, very imposing, Fs. all-mikill, adj. very great, Ísl. ii. 269, Nj. 193, Eg. 29, 39: neut. as adv. greatly, Fms. i. 24, vii. 110. all-mikilmannliga, adv. very nobly, Sturl. i. 33. all-misjafn, adj. very variously, unfavourably, in such phrases as, mæla a. um e-t, there were very different stories about the matter, leggja a. til, ganga a. undir, taka a. á, Eg. 242, Hkr. ii. 123, Fms. i. 86, vii. no, Ld. 166. all-mjór, adj. very slim, slender, narrow, Hkr. iii. 117, Gþl. 173. all-mjök, adv. very much, Nj. 134, Ld. 196, Eg. 19; féllu þá a. menn, in very great numbers, Fms. i. 173. all-myrkr, adj. very dark, Fms. ix. 23. all-mæðiliga, adv. with very great effort, heavily, Fms. ix. 16. all-nauðigr, adj. and -liga, adv. very reluctant, unwilling, Grett. 153; a. staddr, dangerously, Fms. v. 212. all-náinn, adj. very near, nearly related, Sks. 330. all-náttförull, adj. very much given to wandering by night, Lex. Poët. all-níðskárr, adj. of a poet, given to mocking, satirical verse, [níð and skáld (?)], Fms. ii. 7. all-nóg, adv. very abundantly, Sd. 182. all-nær, adv. very near, Fms. vii. 289; metaph., lagði a. at, pretty nearly, well-nigh, Fs., Sks. 684 B. all-nærri, adv. very near, Ld. 202, Fas. iii. 339. all-opt, adv. very often, Anecd. 38, Gþl. 169. all-orðfátt, n. adj. in the phrase, göra a. urn, to be very short of words as to, Bjarn. 31. all-ógurligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very frightful, Edda 41. all-ólmliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very furiously, Fas. iii. 546, Bárð. 177. áll-óttalaust, n. adj. with very little to fear, Eg. 371, v. l. all-ramskipaðr, adj. part. very strongly manned, Fms. iii. 13. all-rauðr, adj. very red, Ld. 182. all-ráðligr, adj. very expedient, advisable, Grett. 145. all-reiðiligr, adj. looking very wrathful, Fms. iv. 161. all-reiðr, adj. very wroth, angry, Edda 57, Nj. 135, Eg. 139. all-ríkmarmligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very grand, pompous, magnificent, Fms. i. 213. all-ríkr, adj. very powerful, Fms. i. 115. all-rýrliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very feebly, puny, Fbr. 28. all-röskliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very smart, brisk, Fms. viii. 317. all-sannligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very likely, ‘soothlike,’ Fms. iv. 270. all-sáttgjarnliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very placable, of mild disposition, Sturl. iii. 288. all-seinn, adj. very slow, Bs. i. 192: neut. as adv. slowly, Grett. 151 A. all-sigrsæll, adj. very victorious, having very good luck in war, Hkr. i. 28. all-skammr, adj. very short, very scant, Nj. 264: neut. substantively, a very short way, Finnb. 324; short distance, Fms. iv. 329. all-skapliga, adv. very fittingly, properly, Grett. 120. all-skapværr, adj. of a very gentle, meek disposition, Sturl. all-skapþungt, n. adj., vera a., to be in a very gloomy, depressed state of mind, Fms. iv. 26. all-skarpr, adj. very sharp, Lex. Poët. all-skeinuhættr, adj. very dangerous, vulnerable, Sturl. ii. 139. all-skemtiligr, adj. very amusing, Sturl. ii. 77. all-skillítill, adj. very slow-witted, dull, Sturl. j. 89. all-skjallkænliga, adv. [skjalla, to flatter], very coaxingly, Grett. 131 A. all-skjótt, n. adj. as adv. very soon, Nj. 236. all-skrautligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very smart, splendid, Fas. ii. 366, Mag. 11. all-skygn, adj. very sharp-sighted, Hrafn. 33. all-skyldr, adj. bound to, very obligatory; neut. = bounden duty, Sks. 484; deserved, Gþl. 61:

β. nearly related, near akin, Fms. xi. 75. all-skyndiliga, adv. very quickly, Blas. 40. all-skynsamliga, adv. very judiciously, Sturl. iii. 161. all-skyrugr, adj. all curd-besprent, Grett. 107 A. all-sköruliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very frankly, boldly, dignified, Sturl. iii. 39, Fms. ix. 5, Ld. 94 C, 226, Bs. i. all-sljáliga, adv. very slowly, sluggishly, Grett. 101 A. all-smár, adj. very small, Fms. v. 55, xi. 61. all-snarpliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very sharply, smartly, Fms. viii. 346. all-snarpr, adj. very sharp, Fms. i. 38, Nj. 246. all-snemma, adv. very early, Fms. ii. 223. all-snjallr, adj. very shrewd, clever, Fms. viii. 367. all-snúðula, adv. very quickly, Lex. Poët. all-snæfr, adj. very brisk, id. all-snöfurmannligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very brisk and energetic looking, of a man, Fms. xi. 79. all-spakliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very mildly, moderately, wisely, Hkr. ii. 41. all-spakr, adj. very gentle, wise, Fms. vi. 298. all-starsýnn, adj. who stares very hard at a thing, looking fixedly upon, Fms. vi. 203. all-sterkliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very briskly, strongly, Ld. 158, Fas. iii. 612. all-sterkr, adj. very strong, Hkr. i. 238, Eg. 285; Ísl. ii. 461 ( very vehement); as a pr. name, Fms. iii. 183. all-stilliliga, adv. very calmly, in a very composed manner, Ld. 318. all-stirðr, adj. very stiff, Háv. 46. all-stórhöggr, adj. dealing very hard blows, Fms. i. 171. all-stórliga, adv. very haughtily, Hkr. ii. 63, Ld. 168. all-stórmannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very munificently, nobly, Fas. iii. 45; haughtily, Sd. 146. all-stórorðr, adj. using very big words, Eg. 340, Ld. 38 ( very boisterous). all-stórr, adj. very great, metaph. big, puffed up, Ld. 318; dat. all-stórum, as adv. very largely, Edda 32. all-strangr, adj. very rapid, Lex. Poët. all-styggr, adj. very ill-humoured, cross, Grett. 103 A. all-styrkliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very stoutly, Stj. 402. all-styrkr, adj. very strong, Fms. i. 177. all-svangr, adj. very hungry, Lex. Poët. all-svinnliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very wisely, prudently, wise, Fas. i. 95, ii. 266. all-sættfúss, adj. very placable, peace-loving, very willing to accept an atonement, Sturl. iii. 19. all-sœmiliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very seemly, decorous, honourable, Hkr. i. 215, Ísl. ii. 163. all-tiginn, adj. very princely, Lex. Poët. all-tillátsamr, adj. very indulgent, lenient, Þórð. 12. all-tíðrætt, n. adj. very much talked of, much spoken of, Eg. 99, Sturl. i. 199. all-tíðvirkr, adj. very quick at work, Fms. xi. 377. all-torfyndr, adj. very hard to find, Fms. vii. 356. all-torfært, n. adj. very hard to pass, cross, Eg. 546. all-torsótt, n. adj. part. very difficult to reach, Eg. 546. all-tortryggiliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very suspiciously, Sturl. ii. 47. all-torveldligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very difficult, Str. all-trauðr, adj. very slow, unwilling, Fms. xi. 39. all-tregr, adj. very tardy, Fær. 114, Bárð. 178. all-trúr, adj. very true. Fms. vi. 377. all-tryggr, adj. very trusty, Hkr. iii. 167. all-tvítugr, false reading, instead of eigi alls t., not quite twenty, Sturl. i. 181. all-undarligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very odd, wonderful, Fms. ii. 150. all-ungr, adj. very young, Eg. 268, Fms. i. 14, Ld. 274. all-úbeinskeyttr, adj. shooting very badly, Fms. ii. 103. all-úblíðr, adj. very harsh, unkind, Fas. ii. all-úbragðligr, adj. very ill-looking, Sturl. iii. 234. all-údæll, adj. very spiteful, untractable, Sturl. i. 99. all-úfagr, adj. very ugly, metaph., Fms. iii. 154. all-úfimliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very awkwardly, Fas. ii. 543. all-úframliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very backward, shy, timid, Fbr. 38 C. all-úfríðr, adj. very ugly, Fms. xi. 227. all-úfrýnn, adj. very sullen, ‘frowning,’ sour, Eg. 525. all-úfrægr, adj. very inglorious, Fms. iv. 259. all-úglaðr, adj. very gloomy, sad, Hkr. iii. 379. all-úhægr, adj. very difficult, Eg. 227. all-úhöfðingligr, adj. very low-looking, very plebeian, Finnb. 222. all-úkátr, adj. very sorrowful, Edda 35, Eg. 223, Fms. i. 37. all-úknár, adj. very weak of frame, Grett. 119 A, very badly knit; Bs. i. 461 (of boys). all-úkonungligr, adj. very unkingly, Fms. viii. 158. all-úkunnigr, adj. quite unknown, Ísl. ii. 412. all-úlífligr, adj. very unlikely to live, Hkr. ii. 200. all-úlíkliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very unlikely, Gísl. 24, Sd. 123, Finnb. 310. all-úlíkr, adj. very unlike, Glúm. 364. all-úlyginn, adj. not at all given to lie, truthful, Fbr. 157. all-úmáttuliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. weakly, very weak, tender, Fms. iv. 318. all-úráðinn, adj. part. very ‘unready’ (cp. Ethelred the ‘unready’), undecided, Lv. 9. all-úráðliga, adv. very unadvisedly, rashly, Odd. 12 old Ed. all-úsannligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very untruthful, unjust; also, unlikely, Fms. vii. 141. all-úsáttfúss, adj. very implacable, unwilling to come to terms, Sturl. iii. 275. all-úskyldr, adj. very strange to, not at all bound to…, Eg. 10. all-úspakr, adj. very unruly, Sturl. ii. 61. all-úsváss, adj. very uncomfortable, of weather, cold and rainy, Bs. i. 509. all-úsýnn, adj. very uncertain, doubtful, Glúm. 358, Sturl. i. 105. all-úsæligr, adj. of very poor, wretched appearance, Niðrst. 109. all-úvinsæll, adj. very unpopular, Fms. iv. 369, Fas. iii. 520. all-úvísliga, adv. very unwisely, Niðrst. 6. all-úvænliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. of very unfavourable prospect, Fas. ii. 266; n. adj. very unpromising, Grett. 148 A. all-úvænn, adi. very ugly, Fas. i. 234; very unpromising, unfavourable, Ísl. ii. 225: neut. as adv. unfavourably, Fms. xi. 134. all-úþarfr, adj. very unthrifty, very unprofitable, something that had better be prevented, Eg. 576, Hkr. ii. 245. all-vandlátr, adj. very difficult, hard to please, Fms. vi. 387. all-vandliga, adv. with very great pains, exactly, carefully, Sks. 658 B. all-vant, n. adj., vera a. um e-t, to be in a very great strait, Nj. 221. all-varfærr, adj. very careful, solicitous, Eg. 63. all-vaskligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very brisk, smart, gallant, Hkr. i. 104; compar. v. alvaskligr. all-vaskr, adj. very brisk, gallant, Fms. viii. 226. all-vandr, adj. very bad, of clothes, much worn, Pm. 11. all-vápndjarfr, adj. very bold, daring in arms, Hkr. iii. 63. all-veðrlítið, n. adj. very calm, with little wind, Fms. vi. 360. all-vegliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very grand, princely, nobly, Fms. i. 20, Eg. 332, Hkr. i. 15. all-vel, adv. very well, Nj. 12, Eg. 78, 198; compar. albetr, v. alvel. all-vesall, adj. very puny, wretched, Nj. 97. all-vesalliga, adv. very wretchedly, Ölk. 35. all-vesalmannliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. id., Ísl. ii. 416. all-vesæll, adj. very miserable, base, vile, Nj. 97. all-vingjarnliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very friendly, amicable, Sturl. ii. 168. all-vingott, n. adj. on very friendly terms, Fbr. 129. all-vinsæll, adj. very popular, used of a man blessed with many friends, Fms. i. 184, ii. 44, Orkn. 104 old Ed. all-virðuligr, adj. and -liga, adv. very worthy, dignified, Fms. x. 84, Bs. i. 83. all-vitr, adj. very wise, Sks. 29 B (superl.) all-vitrliga, adv. very wisely, Fas. ii. 66. all-víða and all-vítt, n. adj. very widely, Hkr. iii. 141, Lex. Poët. all-vígliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. in a very warlike manner, Fms. ix. 488, Fas. ii. 112. all-vígmannliga, adv. very martially, Fas. iii. 150. all-vígmóðr, adj. quite wearied out with fighting, Introd. to Helgakviða (Sæm.) all-víss, adj. very wise, sure, Sks. 520, Lex. Poët.: neut. to a dead certainty, Lex. Poët. all-vænliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very promising, handsome, Glúm. 349, Fms. v. 260, Fbr. 114. all-vænn, adj. id., Clem. 24, Bs. i. 340: neut., þykja a. um, to be in high spirits, Ísl. ii. 361; make much of, Fms. ii. 76; as adv. favourably, Fms. iv. 192. all-vörpuligr, adj. of a very stout, stately frame, Hkr. ii. 254. all-vöxtuligr, adj. very tall, of large growth, Fas. iii. 627. all-þakkligr, adj. very pretty, = þekkiligr, Lex. Poët. all-þakksamliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very thankfully, Fms. i. 120, Ld. 298. all-þarfliga, adv. very thriftily, very pressingly; biðja a., to beg very hard, Edda 45. all-þarfr, adj. very thrifty, Lex. Poët. all-þéttr, adj. very crowded, cp. Lex. Poët. all-þrekligr, adj. of a very robust frame, Hkr. ii. 2. all-þröngr, adj. as neut. in a very great crowd, Edda 24. all-þungliga, adv. and -ligr, adj. very hard, unwilling, reluctant, Sturl. ii. 120; taka a. á e-m, to be very hard upon, Mag. 1. all-þungr, adj. very unfavourable, Hkr. ii. 358; hostile, badly disposed towards, Eb. 108, Eg. 332; þykja a., to dislike, Fms. viii. 441; a. orð, to blame, Sturl. ii. 62. all-þykkr, adj. very thick, Fas. i. 339: n. sing. as adv. thickly, Fms. vii. 70 (of great numbers slain on the battle-field). all-æfr, adj. very furious, wrath, Ísl. ii. 258, Lv. 60, Fas. i. 404. all-ægiligr, adj. very terrible, Dropl. 18. all-æstr, adj. very incited, vehement, Nj. 231. all-örorðr, adj. very quick-tongued, frank, outspoken, Eg. 340. all-öruggliga, adv. very steadfastly, very firmly, Grett. 153 A. all-öruggr, adj. very unflinching, Bs. i. 624.

adv. compar.

1) more, rather;

heldr en, rather than, more than (vápn þeirra bitu eigi heldr en vendir);

2) at heldr, any the more;

also, all the more (at heldr tveimr, at ek mynda gjarna veita yðr öllum);

at heldr þótt, even although;

3) rather (nú vartu heldr til skjótr, en ek heldr til seinn);

var brúðrin döpur heldr, the bride was rather sad;

4) after a negative, but, on the contrary.

* * *

adv. compar.; superl. HELZT; [Goth. haldis; Dan. heller; Swed. hellre, heller: only Scandin., not being found in the Teut. dialects.]

A. COMPAR.,

I. more, rather:

1. with the particle en (an), rather …, than; hann var heldr ljótr an góligr, Eluc. 55; kjós hann heldr til en frá, Bs. i. 480; umbeygilega hljóðs-grein heldr en hvassa, Skálda 182; með margföldu atkvæði heldr en einföldu, Sks. 311; hygg ek at heldr hafi hann helvíti en þessi maðr, Fms. vii. 118; vill hón at honum sé eigi frá vísat … heldr en þeir gefi upp borgina, Fms. i. 157: with a comparative, less than, more than; er þeim sé eigi minni kunnleikr á heldr en nábúum, Grág. ii. 343; bað hann skipa eptir konung-legri miskunn meirr, heldr en eptir hóflausri reiði Amans, Sks. 467.

2. hvart-heldr …, eða, either …, or; whether …, or …; hvárt sem þat yrði heldr kú ildi eðr vaðmál, Dipl. iv. 13; en nú vitum vér eigi hvárt heldr er, … eða muntú …, now we know not which is the case, whether … or …, Fms. i. 33: eða being understood, Gunnlaugi kveðsk vel líka hvárt at heldr er, G. said he should be well pleased whatsoever was done, Ísl. ii. 267.

3. at heldr, not merely …, but rather, all the more, or after a negative, any more; at heldr tveimr, at ek munda gjarna veita yðr öllum, not merely for two, but I would gladly yield it to you all, Nj. 117; ok þótti ekki hans hefnt at heldr, þótt (the more, though) þetta væri at gört, Ísl. ii. 273; en eigi er at heldr hefnt göfugra frænda várra, Fms. viii. 136, Hm. 95; ok at heldr þótt ( even though) þeir væri frjálsir menn, þá væri þeir þó ( yet) óbóta-menn, Eg. 737.

II. intens. very; systur fríða heldr, a very pretty sister, Hom. 115; heldr hljóðr, heldr fámálugr, Fms. xi. 78; var brúðrin döpr heldr, Nj. 11; þaer vóru málgar ok heldr íllorðar, 66; heldr ertú fámennr, Glúm. 377; tala heldr harðfarliga, Eb. 256; konungr var h. úkátr, Eg. 44; mér er heldr kalt, I am very cold, Orkn. (in a verse); þat mun mál manna, at görð sjá sé heldr skökk, Eg. 738; Þorólfr fýsti heldr uppgöngu, Eg. 242; var þá svá komit deginum, at heldr tók út eyktina, that the hour of eykt was just passing, Fb. i. 192.

III. but, on the contrary, Germ. aber, vielmehr, esp. after a negative; eru þat ekki engla nöfn? answer, heldr (no, but) kenningar-nöfn, Eluc. 12; eigi mælir hann svá …, heldr ( but), 40:—eigi, … nema enn heldr, but on the contrary, Stj. 409, 412, 428, 442; hann rak eigi erendi bróður síns, heldr bað hann þeirrar konu sér til handa, Fms. vii. 103; at hyggjandi sinni skylit maðr hræsinn vera, heldr gætinn at geði, Hm. 6; ekki er þat, heldr vill faðir þinn, at …, Glúm. 379; láta þeir sér þat eigi einhlítt, heldr hafa þeir tekið …, Ó. H. 32; hæfir þat ekki, … heldr er yðr þat sæmd, at …, Fagrsk. ch. 16; með lítilli gleði, heldr með miklu angri, Barl. 144.

β. but, Lat. sed, at; Rútr mun ámæla þér í öngu, heldr mun hann biðja at allir geymi þín sem bezt, Nj. 14; eru þeir eigi einir saman í ráða-görð sinni, heldr hafa þeir með sér marga vitra menn, Sks. 313: very freq. in mod. usage, but, þar er hvorki kafald né vetrar-ríki né steypi-regn, heldr …, Od. ix; öngvar hafa þeir ráðs-samkomur eða lög, heldr búa þeir í víðum hellrum, 112; ekki hafa hjarðmenn þar yfirför, eða akryrkju-menn, heldr er eyin ávalt óbygð af mönnum, 123; ekki bjuggu Lótofagar bana-ráð mönnum mínum, heldr …, 92; hann vildi ekki aptr snúa … heldr vildu þeir eptir verða, 95; hann var hið mesta tröll, og ekki menskum manni líkr, heldr skógþöktum tindi hárra fjalla, 191; grát eigi lengr svo ákafliga, freista heldr ( but try) …, Od. iv. 544.

IV. with adverbs; ekki heldr, neither; ekki allnærri, og ekki h. mjög langt undan landi, Od. ix. 117; né heldr, nor either; ekki er þar heldr umgangr af veiði-mönnum, neither is there …, 120; hvorki gróðr-setja þeir nokkra plantan með höndum sínum né heldr ( neither) plægja jörðina, 108: ekki … auk heldr, not to speak of, still less, far less; hann vill ekki ljá mér það, auk heldr gefa, he will not lend it to me, far less give it: hitt-þó-heldr, rather the contrary! proncd. hitt-ó-heldr! ironically, e. g. tarna er fallegt, hittó-heldr, how fine, or rather the contrary! i. e. what a shame! with adverb. datives, öngu heldr, no more; öllu heldr, miklu heldr, much sooner.

B. SUPERL.,

I. soonest; hefi ek þat helzt í hug mér, Nj. 21; kunnu þeir þat helzt at segja til Ástríðar, at …, Fms. i. 68; þeir þykkjask nú helzt menn, Nj. 66: most, nú er þetta fylskni helzt, 133; sem ek veit sannast ok réttast ok helzt at lögum, Grág. i. 75.

2. freq. in mod. usage, soonest, best, most, Germ. am liebsten, am besten; eg vildi það helzt, það væri helzt reynanda.

II. with adverbs; einkum helzt, especially; þeir er Guði þjóna einkum helzt, 625. 165; hóti helzt, nökkvi helzt; þeir áttu hóti helzt sér nokkura kosti í fémunum, Ísl. ii. 134; ok þat hefir hann nökkvi helzt, er Búi mælir fyrir honum, Fms. xi. 78; þá hafði nú helzt nökkut munr á fengizt, Edda 32; allra h., above all; allra helzt í lögum, Skálda 162; hvar helzt, wheresoever, Hom.

III. helzti or hölzti, with an adjective, very much, very, often with the notion of far too; hölzti varr, Fms. viii. 91; hölzti nær oss! 133; hölzti vaskligir, Al. 37; hann létzk við hölzti mikinn hraustleik, 41; ok kvað Guðrúnu hölzti gott at vefja honum at höfði sér, Ld. 188, cp. Fms. ii. 255; helzti fáráðir, Fær. 37; helzti lengi ( far too long) hefir svá farit, Fms. vi. 393; þér sitið heima ok látið vænliga, ok eruð æ hölzti margir, Ld. 216; Þórólfr kvað þræl þann helzti auðgan, Eb. 154; hölzti miklir úgæfu-menn, Nj. 191; hölzti höfum vér verit auðtrygg, Fas. i. 531; þyki mér nú sú ræða helzti löng orðin, Sks. 352; ok er þér hvárr-tveggi helzti góðr, Fms. i. 75; kvað konung hölzti lengi þar hafa kropit um lyng, Hkr. iii. 376.

a. very cold.

very, exceedingly; g. mikill, very great; g. margir, very many, g. illa, very badly.

* * *

a prefix, exceedingly, greatly; geysi-újafnt, Edda 11; geysi-glaðr, exceeding glad, Stj. 478; geysi-mörg, very many, Edda 14; þat er þeim geysi-haglig geit, what a wonderful goat, 24; geysi-illa, very badly, Fms. ii. 295; g. kalli, piercing cold, viii. 306; g. feginn, uncommonly glad, Barl. 85; g. mjök, very much, Fb. i. 210; g. mikill, very muckle, 481; g. fagr, wonderfully fair, Olf. 3. 41, and many others:—with nouns, geysi-fól, a big fool, Flov.

I) prep.

A. with dative.

I. Of motion;

1) towards, against;

Otkell laut at Skamkatli, bowed down to S.;

hann sneri egginni at Ásgrími, turned the edge against A.;

2) close atup to;

Brynjólfr gengr alit at honum, quite up to him;

þeir kómust aldri at honum, they could never get near him, to close quarters with him;

3) to, at;

koma at landi, to come to land;

ganga at dómi, to go into court;

4) along (= eptir);

ganga at stræti, to walk along the street;

dreki er niðr fór at ánni (went down the river) fyrir strauminum;

refr dró hörpu at ísi, on the ice;

5) denoting hostility;

renna (sœkja) at e-m, to rush at, assault;

gerði þá at þeim þoku mikla, they were overtaken by a thick fog;

6) around;

vefja motri at höfði sér, to wrap a veil round one’s head;

bera grjót at e-m, to heap stones upon the body;

7) denoting business, engagement;

ríða at hrossum, at sauðum, to go looking after horses, watching sheep;

fara at landskuldum, to go collecting rents.

II. Of position, &c.;

1) denoting presence at, near, by, upon;

at kirkju, at church;

at dómi, in court;

at lögbergi, at the hill of laws;

2) denoting participation in;

vera at veizlu, brullaupi, to be at a banquet, wedding;

vera at vígi, to be an accessory in man-slaying;

3) ellipt., vera at, to be about, to be busy at;

kvalararnir, er at vóru at pína hann, who were tormenting him;

var þar at kona nökkur at binda (was there busy dressing) sár manna;

4) with proper names of places (farms);

konungr at Danmörku ok Noregi, king of;

biskup at Hólum, bishop of Holar;

at Helgafelli, at Bergþórshváli;

5) used ellipt. with a genitive, at (a person’s) house;

at hans (at his house) gisti fjölmenni mikit;

at Marðar, at Mara’s home;

at hins beilaga Ólafs konungs, at St. Olave’s church;

at Ránar, at Ran’s (abode).

III. Of time;

1) at, in;

at upphafi, at first, in the beginning;

at skilnaði, at parting, when they parted;

at páskum, at Easter;

at kveldi, at eventide;

at þinglausnum, at the close of the Assembly;

at fjöru, at the ebb;

at flœðum, at the floodtide;

2) adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr’;

at ári komanda, next year;

at vári, er kemr, next spring;

generally with ‘komanda’ understood;

at sumri, hausti, vetri, vári, next summer, &c.;

3) used with an absolute dative and present or past part.;

at sér lifanda, duing his lifetime;

at öllum ásjándum, in the sight of all;

at áheyranda höfðingjanum, in the hearing of the chief;

at upprennandi sólu, at sunrise;

at liðnum sex vikum, after six weeks are past;

at honum önduðum, after his death;

4) denoting uninterrupted succession, after;

hverr at öðrum, annarr at öðrum, one after another;

skildu menn at þessu, thereupon, after this;

at því (thereafter) kómu aðrar meyjar.

IV. fig. and in various uses;

1) to, into, with the notion of destruction or change;

brenna (borgina) at ösku, to burn to ashes;

verða at ormi, to become a snake;

2) for, as;

gefa e-t at gjöf, as a present;

eiga e-n at vin, to have one as friend;

3) by;

taka sverð at hjöltum, by the hilt;

draga út björninn at hlustunum, by the ears;

kjósa at afli, álitum, by strength, appearrance;

4) as regards as to;

auðigr at fé, wealthy in goods;

vænn (fagr) at áliti, fair of face;

5) as a law term, on the grounds of, by reason of;

ryðja ( to challenge) dóm at mægðum, kvið at frændsemi;

6) as a paraphrase of a genitive;

faðir, móðir at barni (= barns, of a child);

aðili at sök = aðili sakar;

7) with adjectives denoting colour, size, age, of;

hvítr, svartr, rauðr at lit, while, black, red of colour;

mikill, lítill at stœrð, vexti, tall, small of stature;

tvítugr at aldri, twenty years of age;

kýr at fyrsta, öðrum kálfi, a cow that has calved once, twice;

8) determining the source from which anything comes, of, from;

Ari nam ok marga frœði at Þuríði (from her);

þiggja, kaupa, geta, leigja e-t at e-m, to receive, buy, obtain, borrow a thing from one;

hafa veg (virðing) styrk at e-m, to derive honour, power, from one;

9) according, to, after (heygðr at fornum sið);

at ráði allra vitrustu manna, by the advice of;

at landslögum, by the law of the land;

at vánum, as was to be expected;

at leyfi e-s, by one’s leave;

10) in adverbial phrases;

gróa (vera grœddr) at heilu, to be quite healed;

bíta af allt gras at snøggu, quite bare;

at fullu, fully;

at vísu, surely;

at frjálsu, freely;

at eilífu, for ever and ever;

at röngu, at réttu, wrongly, rightly;

at líku, at sömu, equally, all the same;

at mun, at ráði, at marki, to a great extent.

B. with acc., after, upon (= eptir);

sonr á at taka arf at föður sinn, to take the inheritance after his father;

eiga féránsdóm at e-n, to hold a court of execution upon a person;

at þat (= eptir þat), after that, thereafter;

connected with a past part. or a., at Gamla fallinn, after the fall of Gamli;

at Hrungni dauðan, upon the death of Hrungnir.

1) as the simple mark of the infinitive, to;

at ganga, at ríða, at hlaupa, to walk, to ride, to run;

2) in an objective sense;

hann bauð þeim at fara, sitja, he bade (ordered) them to go, sit;

gefa e-m at eta, at drekka, to give one to eat, to drink;

3) denoting design or purpose, in order to (hann gekk í borg at kaupa silfr).

1) demonstrative particle before a comparative, the, all the, so much the;

hón grét at meir, she wept the more;

þykkir oss at líkara, all the more likely;

þú ert maðr at verri (so much the worse), er þú hefir þetta mælt;

2) rel. pron., who, which, that (= er);

þeir allir, at þau tíðindi heyrðu, all those who heard;

sem þeim er títt, at ( as is the custom of those who) kaupferðir reka.

conj., that;

1) introducing a subjective or objective clause;

þat var einhverju sinni, at Höskuldr hafði vinaboð, it happened once that H.;

vilda ek, at þú réðist austr í fjörðu, I should like you to go;

2) relative to svá, denoting proportion, degree;

svá mikill lagamaðr, at, so great a lawyer, that;

3) with subj., denoting end or purpose, in order that (skáru þeir fyrir þá (viz. hestana) melinn, at þeir dœi eigi af sulti);

4) since, because, as (= því at);

5) connected with þó, því, svá;

þó at (with subj.), though, although;

því at, because, for;

svá at, so that;

6) temp., þá at (= þá er), when;

þegar at (= þegar er), as soon as;

þar til at (= þar til er), until, till;

áðr at (= á. en), before;

7) used superfluously after an int. pron. or adv.;

Ólafr spurði, hvern styrk at hann mundi fá honum, what help he was likely to give him;

in a relative sense; með fullkomnum ávexti, hverr at (which) þekkr ok þægiligr mun verða.

negative verbal suffix, = ata; var-at, was not.

n. an incited conflict or fight ( see etja);

odda at, Yggs at, battle.

* * *

and að, prep., often used ellipt. dropping the case and even merely as an adverb, [Lat. ad; Ulf. at = πρός and παρά, A. S. ät; Engl. at; Hel. ad = apud; O. H. G. az; lost in mod. Germ., and rare in Swed. and Dan.; in more freq. use in Engl. than any other kindred language, Icel. only excepted]:—the mod. pronunciation and spelling is að (aþ); this form is very old, and is found in Icel. vellum MSS. of the 12th century, e. g. aþ, 623. 60; yet in earlier times it was sounded with a tenuis, as we may infer from rhymes, e. g. jöfurr hyggi at | hve ek yrkja fat, Egill: Sighvat also makes it rhyme with a t. The verse by Thorodd—þar vastu at er fjáðr klæðið þvat (Skálda 162)—is hardly intelligible unless we accept the spelling with an aspirate (að), and say that þvað is = þvá = þváði, lavabat; it may be that by the time of Thorodd and Ari the pure old pronunciation was lost, or is ‘þvat’ simply the A. S. þvât, secuit? The Icelanders still, however, keep the tenuis in compounds before a vowel, or before h, v, or the liquids l, r, thus—atyrða, atorka, athöfn, athugi, athvarf, athlægi; atvinna, atvik; atlaga, atlíðanði ( slope), atriði, atreið, atróðr: but aðdjúpr, aðfinsla (critic), aðferð, aðkoma, aðsókn, aðsúgr (crowding), aðgæzla. In some words the pronunciation is irregular, e. g. atkvæði not aðkv-; atburðr, but aðbúnaðr; aðhjúkran not athjúkran; atgörvi not aðgörfi. At, to, towards; into; against; along, by; in regard to; after.

Mostly with dat.; rarely with acc.; and sometimes ellipt.—by dropping the words ‘home,’ ‘house,’ or the like—with gen.

WITH DAT.

A. LOC.

I. WITH MOTION; gener. the motion to the borders, limits of an object, and thus opp. to frá:

1. towards, against, with or without the notion of arrival, esp. connected with verbs denoting motion (verba movendi et eundi), e. g. fara, ganga, koma, lúta, snúa, rétta at…; Otkell laut at Skamkatli, O. louted (i. e. bowed down) towards S., Nj. 77, Fms. xi. 102; sendimaðrinn sneri ( turned) hjöltum sverðsins at konungi, towards the king, i. 15; hann sneri egginni at Ásgrími, turned the edge towards A., Nj. 220; rétta e-t at e-m, to reach, hand over, Ld. 132; ganga at, to step towards, Ísl. ii. 259.

2. denoting proximity, close up to, up to; Brynjólfr gengr … allt at honum, B. goes quite up to him, Nj. 58; Gunnarr kom þangat at þeim örunum, G. reached them even there with his arrows, 115; þeir kómust aldri at honum, they could never get near him, to close quarters, id.; reið maðr at þeim (up to them), 274; þeir höfðu rakit sporin allt at ( right up to) gammanum, Fms. i. 9; komu þeir at sjó fram, came down to the sea, Bárð. 180.

3. without reference to the space traversed, to or at; koma at landi, to land, Ld. 38, Fms. viii. 358; ríða at dyrum, Boll. 344; hlaupa at e-m, to run up to, run at, Fms. vii. 218, viii. 358; af sjáfarganginum er hann gekk at landinu, of the surf dashing against the shore, xi. 6; vísa ólmum hundi at manni, to set a fierce hound at a man, Grág. ii. 118; leggja e-n at velli, to lay low, Eg. 426, Nj. 117; hníga at jörðu, at grasi, at moldu, to bite the dust, to die, Njarð. 378; ganga at dómi, a law term, to go into court, of a plaintiff, defendant, or bystander, Nj. 87 (freq.)

4. denoting a motion along, into, upon; ganga at stræti, to walk along the street, Korm. 228, Fms. vii. 39; at ísi, on the ice, Skálda 198, Fms. vii. 19, 246, viii. 168, Eb. 112 new Ed. (á is perh. wrong); máttu menn ganga bar yfir at skipum einum, of ships alone used as a bridge, Fas. i. 378; at höfðum, at nám, to trample on the slain on the battle-field, Lex. Poët.; at ám, along the rivers; at merkiósum, at the river’s mouth, Grág. ii. 355; at endilöngu baki, all along its back, Sks. 100.

5. denoting hostility, to rush at, assault; renna at, hlaupa at, ganga, fara, ríða, sækja, at e-m, (v. those words), whence the nouns atrenna, athlaup, atgangr, atför, atreið, atsókn, etc.

β. metaph., kom at þeim svefnhöfgi, deep sleep fell on them, Nj. 104. Esp. of weather, in the impers. phrase, hríð, veðr, vind, storm görir at e-m, to be overtaken by a snow storm, gale, or the like; görði þá at þeim þoku mikla, they were overtaken by a thick fog, Bárð. 171.

6. denoting around, of clothing or the like; bregða skikkju at höfði sér, to wrap his cloak over his head, Ld. 62; vefja motri at höfði sér, to wrap a snood round her head, 188; sauma at, to stick, cling close, as though sewn on; sauma at höndum sér, of tight gloves, Bs. i. 453; kyrtill svá þröngr sem saumaðr væri at honum, as though it were stitched to him, Nj. 214; vafit at vándum dreglum, tight laced with sorry tags, id.; hosa strengd fast at beini, of tight hose, Eg. 602; hann sveipar at sér iðrunum ok skyrtunni, he gathers up the entrails close to him and the skirt too, Gísl. 71; laz at síðu, a lace on the side, to keep the clothes tight, Eg. 602.

β. of burying; bera grjót at einum, to heap stones upon the body, Eg. 719; var gör at þeim dys or grjóti, Ld. 152; gora kistu at líki, to make a coffin for a body, Eb. 264, Landn. 56, Ld. 142.

γ. of summoning troops or followers; stefna at sér mönnum, to summon men to him, Nj. 104; stefna at sér liði, Eg. 270; kippa mönnum at sér, to gather men in haste, Ld. 64.

7. denoting a business, engagement; ríða at hrossum, at sauðum, to go looking after after horses, watching sheep, Glúm. 362, Nj. 75; fara at fé, to go to seek for sheep, Ld. 240; fara at heyi, to go a-haymaking, Dropl. 10; at veiðum, a-hunting; at fuglum, a-fowling; at dýrum, a-sbooting; at fiski, a-fishing; at veiðiskap, Landn. 154, Orkn. 416 (in a verse), Nj. 25; fara at landskuldum, to go a-collecling rents, Eg. 516; at Finnkaupum, a-marketing with Finns, 41; at féföngum, a-plundering, Fms. vii. 78; ganga at beina, to wait on guests, Nj. 50; starfa at matseld, to serve at table, Eb. 266; hitta e-n at nauðsynjum, on matters of business; at máli, to speak with one, etc., Fms. xi. 101; rekast at e-m, to pursue one, ix. 404; ganga at liði sér, to go suing for help, Grág. ii. 384.

β. of festivals; snúa, fá at blóti, veizlu, brullaupi, to prepare for a sacrificial banquet, wedding, or the like, hence at-fangadagr, Eb. 6, Ld. 70; koma at hendi, to happen, befall; ganga at sínu, to come by one’s own, to take it, Ld. 208; Egill drakk hvert full er at honum kom, drained every horn that came to him, Eg. 210; komast at keyptu, to purchase dearly, Húv. 46.

8. denoting imaginary motion, esp. of places, cp. Lat. spectare, vergere ad…, to look or lie towards; horfði botninn at höfðanum, the bight of the bay looked toward the headland, Fms. i. 340, Landn. 35; also, skeiðgata liggr at læknum, leads to the brook, Ísl. ii. 339; á þann arminn er vissi at sjánum, on that wing which looked toward the sea, Fms. viii. 115; sár þau er horft höfðu at Knúti konungi, xi. 309.

β. even connected with verbs denoting motion; Gilsáreyrr gengr austan at Fljótinu, G. extends, projects to F. from the east, Hrafh. 25; hjá sundi því, er at gengr þingstöðinni, Fms. xi. 85.

II. WITHOUT MOTION; denoting presence at, near, by, at the side of, in, upon; connected with verbs like sitja, standa, vera…; at kirkju, at church, Fms. vii. 251, K. f). K. 16, Ld. 328, Ísl. ii. 270, Sks. 36; vera at skála, at húsi, to be in, at home, Landn. 154; at landi, Fms. i. 82; at skipi, on shipboard, Grág. i. 209, 215; at oldri, at a banquet, inter pocula; at áti, at dinner, at a feast, inter edendum, ii. 169, 170; at samförum ok samvistum, at public meetings, id.; at dómi, in a court; standa (to take one’s stand) norðan, sunnan, austan, vestan at dómi, freq. in the proceedings at trials in lawsuits, Nj.; at þingi, present at the parliament, Grág. i. 142; at lögbergi, o n the hill of laws, 17, Nj.; at baki e-m, at the back of.

2. denoting presence, partaking in; sitja at mat, to sit at meat, Fms. i. 241; vera at veizlu, brullaupi, to be at a banquet, nuptials, Nj. 51, Ld. 70: a law term, vera at vígi, to be an accessory in manslaying, Nj. 89, 100; vera at e-u simply means to be about, be busy in, Fms. iv. 237; standa at máli, to stand by one in a case, Grág. ii. 165, Nj. 214; vera at fóstri, to be fostered, Fms. i. 2; sitja at hégóma, to listen to nonsense, Ld. 322; vera at smíð, to be at one’s work, Þórð. 62: now absol., vera at, to go on with, be busy at.

3. the law term vinna eið at e-u has a double meaning:

α. vinna eið at bók, at baugi, to make an oath upon the book by laying the band upon it, Landn. 258, Grág., Nj.; cp. Vkv. 31, Gkv. 3. 3, Hkv. 2. 29, etc.: ‘við’ is now used in this sense.

β. to confirm a fact (or the like) by an oath, to swear to, Grág. i. 9, 327.

γ. the law phrase, nefna vátta at e-u, of summoning witnesses to a deed, fact, or the like; nefna vátta at benjum, to produce evidence, witnesses as to the wounds, Nj., Grág.; at görð, Eg. 738; at svörum, Grág. i. 19: this summoning of witnesses served in old lawsuits the same purpose as modern pleadings and depositions; every step in a suit to be lawful must be followed by such a summoning or declaration.

4. used ellipt., vera at, to be about, to be busy at; kvalararnir er at vóru at pína hann, who were tormenting him; þar varstu at, you were there present, Skálda 162; at várum þar, Gísl. (in a verse): as a law term ‘vera at’ means to be guilty, Glúm. 388; vartattu at þar, Eg. (in a verse); hence the ambiguity of Glum’s oath, vask at þar, I was there present: var þar at kona nokkur ( was there busy) at binda sár manna, Fms. v. 91; hann var at ok smíðaði skot, Rd. 313; voru Varbelgir at ( about) at taka af, þau lög …, Fms. ix. 512; ek var at ok vafk, I was about weaving, xi. 49; þeir höfðu verit at þrjú sumur, they had been busy at it for three summers, x. 186 (now very freq.); koma at, come in, to arrive unexpectedly; Gunnarr kom at í því, G. came in at that moment; hvaðan komtú nú at, whence did you come? Nj. 68, Fms. iii. 200.

5. denoting the kingdom or residence of a king or princely person; konungr at Danmörk ok Noregi, king of…, Fms. i. 119, xi. 281; konungr, jarl, at öllum Noregi, king, earl, over all N., íb. 3, 13, Landn. 25; konungr at Dyflinni, king of Dublin, 25; but í or yfir England!, Eg. 263: cp. the phrase, sitja at landi, to reside, of a king when at home, Hkr. i. 34; at Joini, Fms. xi. 74: used of a bishop; biskup at Hólum, bishop of Hólar, Íb. 18, 19; but biskup í Skálaholti, 19: at Rómi, at Rome, Fbr. 198.

6. in denoting a man’s abode (vide p. 5, col. 1, l. 27), the prep. ‘at’ is used where the local name implies the notion of by the side of, and is therefore esp. applied to words denoting a river, brook, rock, mountain, grove, or the like, and in some other instances, by, at, e. g. at Hofi (a temple), Landn. 198; at Borg ( a castle), 57; at Helgafelli (a mountain), Eb. constantly so; at Mosfelli, Landn. 190; at Hálsi (a hill), Fms. xi. 22; at Bjargi, Grett. 90; Hálsum, Landn. 143; at Á ( river), 296, 268; at Bægisá, 212; Giljá, 332; Myrká, 211; Vatnsá, id.; þverá, Glúm. 323; at Fossi (a ‘force’ or waterfall), Landn. 73; at Lækjamoti (waters-meeting), 332; at Hlíðarenda ( end of the lithe or hill), at Bergþórshváli, Nj.; at Lundi (a grove), at Melum (sandhill), Landn. 70: the prep. ‘á’ is now used in most of these cases, e. g. á Á, á Hofi, Helgafelli, Felli, Hálsi, etc.

β. particularly, and without any regard to etymology, used of the abode of kings or princes, to reside at; at Uppsölum, at Haugi, Alreksstöðum, at Hlöðum, Landn., Fms.

γ. konungr lét kalla at stofudyrum, the king made a call at the hall door, Eg. 88; þeir kölluðu at herberginu, they called at the inn, Fms. ix. 475.

7. used ellipt. with a gen., esp. if connected with such words as gista, to be a guest, lodge, dine, sup (of festivals or the like) at one’s home; at Marðar, Nj. 4; at hans, 74; þingfesti at þess bóanda, Grág. i. 152; at sín, at one’s own home, Eg. 371, K. Þ. K. 62; hafa náttstað at Freyju, at the abode of goddess Freyja, Eg. 603; at Ránar, at Ran’s, i. e. at Ran’s house, of drowned men who belong to the queen of the sea, Ran, Eb. 274; at hins heilaga Ólafs konungs, at St. Olave’s church, Fms. vi. 63: cp. ad Veneris, εις Κίμωνος.

B. TEMP.

I. at, denoting a point or period of time; at upphafi, at first, in the beginning, Ld. 104; at lyktum, at síðustu, at lokum, at last; at lesti, at last, Lex. Poët., more freq. á lesti; at skilnaði, at parting, at last, Band. 3; at fornu, in times of yore, formerly, Eg. 267, D. I. i. 635; at sinni, as yet, at present; at nýju, anew, of present time; at eilífu, for ever and ever; at skömmu, soon, shortly, Ísl. ii. 272, v. l.

II. of the very moment when anything happens, the beginning of a term; denoting the seasons of the year, months, weeks, the hours of the day; at Jólum, at Yule, Nj. 46; at Pálmadegi, on Palm Sunday, 273; at Páskum, at Easter; at Ólafsvöku, on St. Olave’s eve, 29th of July, Fms.; at vetri, at the beginning of the winter, on the day when winter sets in, Grág. 1. 151; at sumarmálum, at vetrnáttum; at Tvímánaði, when the Double month (August) begins, Ld. 256, Grág. i. 152; at kveldi, at eventide, Eg. 3; at því meli, at that time; at eindaga, at the term, 395; at eykð, at 4 o’clock p. m., 198; at öndverðri æfi Abra hams, Ver. II; at sinni, now at once, Fms. vi. 71; at öðruhverju, every now and then.

β. where the point of time is marked by some event; at þingi, at the meeting of parliament (18th to the 24th of June), Ld. 182; at féránsdómi, at the court of execution, Grág. i. 132, 133; at þinglausnum, at the close of the parliament (beginning of July), 140; at festarmálum, eðr at eiginorði, at betrothal or nuptials, 174; at skilnaði, when they parted, Nj. 106 (above); at öllum minnum, at the general drinking of the toasts, Eg. 253; at fjöru, at the ebb; at flæðum, at flood tide, Fms. viii. 306, Orkn. 428; at hrörum, at an inquest, Grág. i. 50 (cp. ii. 141, 389); at sökum, at prosecutions, 30; at sinni, now, as yet, v. that word.

III. ellipt., or adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr,’ of the future time:

1. ellipt., komanda or the like being understood, with reference to the seasons of the year; at sumri, at vetri, at hausti, at vári, next summer, winter…, Ísl. ii. 242; at miðju sumri, at ári, at Midsummer, next year, Fas. i. 516; at miðjum vetri, Fms. iv. 237,

2. adding ‘komanda’ or ‘er kemr;’ at ári komanda, Bárð. 177; at vári er kemr, Dipl. iii. 6.

IV. used with an absolute dat. and with a pres. part.:

1. with pres. part.; at morni komanda, on the coming morrow, Fms. i. 263; at sér lifanda, in vivo, in his life time, Grág. ii. 202; at þeim sofundum, illis dormientibus, Hkr. i. 234; at öllum ásjándum, in the sight of all, Fms. x. 329; at úvitanda konungi, illo nesciente, without his knowledge, 227; at áheyranda höfðingjanum, in the chief’s bearing, 235.

2. of past time with a past part. (Lat. abl. absol.); at hræjum fundnum, on the bodies being found, Grág. ii. 87; at háðum dómum ok föstu þingi, during the session, the courts being set, i. 484; at liðnum sex vikum, after six weeks past, Band. 13; at svá búnu, so goru, svá komnu, svá mæltu (Lat. quibus rebus gestis, dictis, quo facto, dicto, etc.), v. those words; at úreyndu, without trial, without put ting one to the test, Ld. 76; at honum önduðum, illo mortuo.

3. ellipt. without ‘at;’ en þessum hlutum fram komnum, when all this has been done, Eb. 132.

V. in some phrases with a slight temp, notion; at görðum gildum, the fences being strong, Gþl. 387; at vörmu spori, at once, whilst the trail is warm; at úvörum, unawares, suddenly, Nj. 95, Ld. 132; at þessu, at this cost, on that condition, Eb. 38, Nj. 55; at illum leiki, to have a narrow escape, now við illan leik, Fms. ix. 473; at því, that granted, Grág. ii. 33: at því, at pessu, thereafter, thereupon, Nj. 76.

2. denoting succession, without interruption, one after another; hverr at öðrum, annarr maðr at öðrum, aðrir at öðrum; eina konu at annarri, Eg. 91, Fms. ii. 236, vi. 25, Bs. i. 22, 625. 80, H. E. i. 522.

C. METAPH. and in various cases:

I. denoting a transformation or change into, to, with the notion of destruction; brenna at ösku, at köldum kolum, to burn to ashes, to be quite destroyed, Fms. i. 105, Edda 3, Sturl. ii. 51: with the notion of transformation or transfiguration, in such phrases as, verða at e-u, göra e-t at e-u, to turn it into:

α. by a spell; verða at ormi, to become a snake, Fms. xi. 158; at flugdrekum, Gullþ. 7; urðu þau bönd at járni, Edda 40.

β. by a natural process it can often be translated by an acc. or by as; göra e-n at urðarmanni, to make him an outlaw, Eg. 728; græða e-n at orkumlamanni, to heal him so as to maim him for life, of bad treatment by a leech, Eb. 244: in the law terms, sár görist at ben, a wound turning into a ben, proving to be mortal, Grág., Nj.; verða at ljúgvætti, to prove to be a false evidence, Grág. i. 44; verða at sætt, to turn into reconciliation, Fms. i. 13; göra e-t at reiði málum, to take offence at, Fs. 20; at nýjum tíðindum, to tell as news, Nj. 14; verða fátt at orðum, to be sparing of words, 18; kveðr (svá) at orði, to speak, utter, 10; verða at þrifnaði, to geton well, Fms. vii. 196: at liði, at skaða, to be a help or hurt to one; at bana, to cause one’s death, Nj. 223, Eg. 21, Grág. ii. 29: at undrum, at hlátri, to become a wonder, a laughing-stock, 623. 35, Eg. 553.

II. denoting capacity, where it may be translated merely by as or for; gefa at Jólagjöf, to give for a Christmas-box, Eg. 516; at gjöf, for a present; at erfð, at láni, launum, as an inheritance, a loan; at kaupum ok sökum, for buying and selling, Ísl. ii. 223, Grág. i. 423; at solum, ii. 204; at herfangi, as spoil or plunder; at sakbótum, at niðgjöldum, as a compensation, weregeld, i. 339, ii. 171, Hkr. ii. 168; taka at gíslingu, to take as an hostage, Edda 15; eiga e-n at vin, at óvin, to have one as friend or foe, illt er at eiga þræl at eingavin, ‘tis ill to have a thrall for one’s bosom friend (a proverb), Nj. 77; fæða, eiga, at sonum (syni), to beget a son, Edda 8, Bs. i. 60 (but eiga at dóttur cannot be said); hafa möttul at yfirhöfn, Fms. vii. 201; verða nökkut at manni (mönnum), to turn out to be a worthy man; verða ekki at manni, to turn out a worthless person, xi. 79, 268.

2. in such phrases as, verða at orðum, to come towards, Nj. 26; var þat at erindum, Eg. 148; hafa at veizlum, to draw veizlur ( dues) from, Fms. iv. 275, Eg. 647; gora e-t at álitum, to take it into consideration, Nj. 3.

III. denoting belonging to, fitting, of parts of the whole or the like; vóru at honum (viz. the sword) hjölt gullbúin, the sword was ornamented with a hilt of gold, Ld. 330; umgörð at ( belonging to) sverði, Fs. 97 (Hs.) in a verse; en ef mór er eigi at landinu, if there be no turf moor belonging to the land, Grág. ii. 338; svá at eigi brotnaði nokkuð at Orminum, so that no harm happened to the ship Worm, Fms. x. 356; hvatki er meiðir at skipinu eðr at reiðinu eðr at viðum, damage done t o …, Grág. ii. 403; lesta ( to injure) hús at lásum, við eðr torfi, 110; ef land hefir batnað at húsum, if the land has been bettered as to its buildings, 210; cp. the phrase, göra at e-u, to repair: hamlaðr at höndum eðr fótum, maimed as to hands or feet, Eg. 14; heill at höndum en hrumr at fótum, sound in band, palsied in foot, Fms. vii. 12; lykill at skrá, a key belonging, fitting, to the latch; hurð at húsi; a key ‘gengr at’ ( fits) skrá; and many other phrases. 2. denoting the part by which a thing is held or to which it belongs, by; fá, taka at…, to grasp by …; þú tókt við sverði hans at hjöltunum, you took it by the bill, Fms. i. 15; draga út björninn at hlustum, to pull out the bear by the ears, Fas. ii. 237; at fótum, by the feet, Fms. viii. 363; mæla ( to measure) at hrygg ok at jaðri, by the edge or middle of the stuff, Grág. i. 498; kasta e-m at höfði, head foremost, Nj. 84; kjósa e-n at fótum, by the feet alone, Edda 46; hefja frændsemi at bræðrum, eða at systkynum, to reckon kinship by the brother’s or the sister’s side, Grág. i. 28; kjósa at afli, at álitum, by strength, sight, Gs. 8, belongs rather to the following.

IV. in respect of, as regards, in regard to, as to; auðigr at fé, wealthy of goods, Nj. 16, 30, 51; beztir hestar at reið, the best racehorses, 186; spekingr at viti, a man of great intellect, Ld. 124; vænn (fagr) at áliti, fair of face, Nj. 30, Bs. i. 61; kvenna vænst at ásjónu ok vits munum, of surpassing beauty and intellect, Ld. 122; fullkominn at hyggju, 18; um fram aðra menn at vinsældum ok harðfengi, of surpassing popularity and hardihood, Eb. 30.

2. a law term, of challenging jurors, judges, or the like, on account of, by reason of; ryðja ( to challenge) at mægðum, guðsifjum, frændsemi, hrörum …; at leiðarlengd, on account of distance, Grág. i. 30, 50, Nj. (freq.)

3. in arithm. denoting proportion; at helmingi, þriðjungi, fjórðungi, tíunda hluta, cp. Lat. ex asse, quadrante, for the half, third… part; máttr skal at magni (a proverb), might and main go together, Hkr. ii. 236; þú munt vera at því mikill fræðimaðr á kvæði, in the same proportion, as great, Fms. vi. 391, iii. 41; at e-s hluta, at… leiti, for one’s part, in turn, as far as one is con cerned, Grág. i. 322, Eg. 309, Fms. iii. 26 (freq.): at öðrum kosti, in the other case, otherwise (freq.) More gener., at öllu, öngu, in all (no) respects; at sumu, einhverju, nokkru, partly; at flestu, mestu, chiefly.

4. as a paraphrase of a genitive; faðir, móðir at barni (= barns); aðili at sök (= sakar a.); morðingi at barni (= barns), faðerni at barni (barns); illvirki at fé manna (cp. Lat. felo de se), niðrfall at sökum (saka), land gangr at fiskum (fiska), Fms. iv. 274, Grág. i. 277, 416, N. G. L. i. 340, K. Þ. K. 112, Nj. 21.

5. the phrase ‘at sér,’ of himself or in himself, either ellipt. or by adding the participle görr, and with the adverbs vel, ilia, or the like; denoting breeding, bearing, endowments, character …; væn kona, kurteis ok vel at sér, an accomplished, well-bred, gifted lady, Nj. I; vitr maðr ok vel at sér, a wise man and thoroughly good in feeling and bearing, 5; þú ert maðr vaskr ok vel at þér, 49; gerr at sér, accomplished, 51; bezt at sér görr, the finest, best bred man, 39, Ld. 124; en þó er hann svá vel at sér, so generous, Nj. 77; þeir höfðingjar er svá vóru vel at sér, so noble-minded, 198, Fms. i. 160: the phrase ‘at sér’ is now only used of knowledge, thus maðr vel að sér means clever, a man of great knowledge; illa að sér, a blockhead.

6. denoting relations to colour, size, value, age, and the like; hvitr, svartr, grár, rauðr … at lit, white, swarthy, gray, red … of colour, Bjarn. 55, 28, Ísl. ii. 213, etc.; mikill, lítill, at stærð, vexti, tall, small of size, etc.; ungr, gamall, barn, at aldri, young, old, a child of age; tvítugr, þrítugr … at aldri, twenty, thirty … years of age (freq.): of animals; kyr at fyrsta, öðrum … kálfi, a cow having calved once, twice…, Jb. 346: value, amount, currency of money, kaupa e-t at mörk, at a mark, N. G. L. 1. 352; ok er eyririnn at mörk, amounts to a mark, of the value of money, Grág. i. 392; verðr þá at hálfri murk vaðmála eyrir, amounts to a half a mark, 500.

β. metaph. of value, connected with verbs denoting to esteem, hold; meta, hafa, halda at miklu, litlu, vettugi, engu, or the like, to hold in high or low esteem, to care or not to care for (freq.): geta e-s at góðu, illu, öngu, to mention one favourably, unfavourably, indifferently … (freq.), prop. in connection with. In many cases it may be translated by in; ekki er mark at draumum, there is no meaning in dreams, no heed is to be paid to dreams, Sturl. ii. 217; bragð er at þá barnið finnr, it goes too far, when even a child takes offence (a proverb): hvat er at því, what does it mean? Nj. 11; hvert þat skip er vöxtr er at, any ship of mark, i. e. however small, Fms. xi. 20.

V. denoting the source of a thing:

1. source of infor mation, to learn, perceive, get information from; Ari nam ok marga fræði at Þuríði, learnt as her pupil, at her hands, as St. Paul at the feet of Gamaliel, (just as the Scotch say to speer or ask at a person); Ari nam at Þorgeiri afraðskoll, Hkr. (pref.); nema kunnáttu at e-m, used of a pupil, Fms. i. 8; nema fræði at e-m, xi. 396.

2. of receiving, acquiring, buying, from; þiggja e-t at e-m, to receive a thing at his hands, Nj. 51; líf, to be pardoned, Fms. x. 173; kaupa land at e-m, to buy it from, Landn. 72, Íb. II, (now af is more freq. in this sense); geta e-t at e-m, to obtain, procure at one’s hands, impetrare; þeirra manna er þeir megu þat geta at, who are willing to do that, Grág. i. I; heimta e-t at e-m (now af), to call in, demand (a debt, money), 279; fala e-t at e-m (now af), to chaffer for or cheapen anything, Nj. 73; sækja e-t at e-m, to ask, seek for; sækja heilræði ok traust at e-m, 98; leiga e-t at e-m (now af), to borrow, Grág. ii. 334; eiga e-t (fé, skuld) at e-m, to be owed money by any one, i. 399: metaph. to deserve of one, Nj. 113; eiga mikit at e-m, to have much to do with, 138; hafa veg, virðing, styrk, at, to derive honour, power from, Fms. vi. 71, Eg. 44, Bárð. 174; gagn, to be of use, Ld. 216; mein, tálma, mischief, disadvantage, 158, 216, cp. Eg. 546; ótta, awe, Nj. 68.

VI. denoting conformity, according to, Lat. secundum, ex, after; at fornum sið, Fms. i. 112; at sögn Ara prests, as Ari relates, on his authority, 55; at ráði allra vitrustu manna, at the advice of, Ísl. ii. 259, Ld. 62; at lögum, at landslögum, by the law of the land, Grág., Nj.; at líkindum, in all likelihood, Ld. 272; at sköpum, in due course (poet.); at hinum sama hætti, in the very same manner, Grág. i. 90; at vánum, as was to be expected, Nj. 255; at leyfi e-s, by one’s leave, Eg. 35; úlofi, Grág. ii. 215; at ósk, vilja e-s, as one likes…; at mun, id. (poet.); at sólu, happily (following the course of the sun), Bs. i. 70, 137; at því sem …, as to infer from …, Nj. 124: ‘fara, láta, ganga at’ denotes to yield, agree to, to comply with, give in, Ld. 168, Eg. 18, Fms. x. 368.

VII. in phrases nearly or quite adverbial; gróa, vera græddr, at heilu, to be quite healed, Bárð. 167, Eb. 148; bíta at snöggu, to bite it bare, Fms. xi. 6; at þurru, till it becomes dry, Eb. 276; at endilöngu, all along, Fas. ii; vinnast at litlu, to avail little, 655 x. 14; at fullu, fully, Nj. 257, Hkr. i. 171; at vísu, of a surety, surely, Ld. 40; at frjálsu, freely, 308; at líku, at sömu, equally, all the same, Hom. 80, Nj. 267; at röngu, wrongly, 686 B. 2; at hófi, temperately, Lex. Poët.; at mun, at ráði, at marki, to a great extent; at hringum, utterly, all round, (rare), Fms. x. 389; at einu, yet, Orkn. 358; svá at einu, því at einu, allt at einu, yet, however, nevertheless.

VIII. connected with comparatives of adverbs and adjectives, and strengthening the sense, as in Engl. ‘the,’ so much the more, all the more; ‘at’ heldr tveimr, at ek munda gjarna veita yðr öllum, where it may be translated by so much the more to two, as I would willingly grant it to all of you; hon grét at meir, she grat (wept) the more, Eg. 483; þykir oss at líkara, all the more likely, Fms. viii. 6; þess at harðari, all the harder, Sturl. iii. 202 C; svá at hinn sé bana at nær, Grág. ii. 117; at auðnara, at hólpnara, the more happy, Al. 19, Grett. 116 B; þess at meiri, Fms. v. 64; auvirðismaðr at meiri, Sturl. ii. 139; maðr at vaskari, id.; at feigri, any the more fey, Km. 22; maðr at verri, all the worse, Nj. 168; ok er ‘at’ firr…, at ek vil miklu heldr, cp. Lat. tantum abest… ut, Eg. 60.

β. following after a negation; eigi at síðr, no less, Nj. 160, Ld. 146; eigi… at meiri maðr, any better, Eg. 425, 489; erat héra at borgnara, any the better off for that, Fms. vii. 116; eigi at minni, no less for that, Edda (pref.) 146; eigi at minna, Ld. 216, Fms. ix. 50; ekki at verri drengr, not a bit worse for that, Ld. 42; er mér ekki son minn at bættari, þótt…, 216; at eigi vissi at nær, any more, Fas. iii. 74.

IX. following many words:

1. verbs, esp. those denoting, a. to ask, enquire, attend, seek, e. g. spyrja at, to speer (ask) for; leita at, to seek for; gæta, geyma at, to pay attention to; huga, hyggja at; hence atspurn, to enquire, aðgæzla, athugi, attention, etc.

β. verbs denoting laughter, play, joy, game, cp. the Engl. to play at …, to laugh at …; hlæja, brosa at e-u, to laugh, smile at it; leika (sér) at e-u, to play at; þykja gaman at, to enjoy; hæða, göra gys at …, to make sport at …

γ. verbs denoting assistance, help; standa, veita, vinna, hjálpa at; hence atstoð, atvinna, atverk:—mode, proceeding; fara at, to proceed, hence atför and atferli:—compliance; láta, fara at e-u, v. above:— fault; e-t er at e-u, there is some fault in it, Fms. x. 418; skorta at e-u, to fall short of, xi. 98:—care, attendance; hjúkra at, hlýja at, v. these words:—gathering, collecting; draga, reiða, flytja, fá at, congerere:—engagement, arrival, etc.; sækja at, to attack; ganga at, vera at, to be about; koma at, ellipt. to arrive: göra at, to repair: lesta at, to impair (v. above); finna at, to criticise (mod.); telja at, id.: bera at, to happen; kveða at e-m, to address one, 625. 15, (kveða at (ellipt.) now means to pronounce, and of a child to utter (read) whole syllables); falla at, of the flood-tide (ellipt.): metaph. of pains or straits surrounding one; þreyngja, herða at, to press hard: of frost and cold, with regard to the seasons; frjósa at, kólna at, to get really cold (SI. 44), as it were from the cold stiffening all things: also of the seasons themselves; hausta, vetra að, when the season really sets in; esp. the cold seasons, ‘sumra at’ cannot be used, yet we may say ‘vára að’ when the spring sets in, and the air gets mild.

δ. in numberless other cases which may partly be seen below.

2. connected ellipt. with adverbs denoting motion from a place; norðan, austan, sunnan, vestan at, those from the north, east…; utan at, innan at, from the outside or inside.

3. with adjectives (but rarely), e. g. kærr, elskr, virkr (affectionate), vandr (zealous), at e-m; v. these words.

WITH ACC.

TEMP.: Lat. post, after, upon, esp. freq. in poetry, but rare in prose writers, who use eptir; nema reisi niðr at nið (= maðr eptir mann), in succession, of erecting a monument, Hm. 71; in prose, at þat. posthac, deinde, Fms. x. 323, cp. Rm., where it occurs several times, 2, 6, 9, 14, 18, 24, 28, 30, 35; sonr á at taka arf at föður sinn, has to take the inheritance after his father, Grág. i. 170 new Ed.; eiga féránsdóm at e-n, Grág. i. 89; at Gamla fallinn, after the death of G., Fms. x. 382; in Edda (Gl.) 113 ought to be restored, grét ok at Oð, gulli Freyja, she grat (wept) tears of gold for her lost husband Od. It is doubtful if it is ever used in a purely loc. sense; at land, Grág. (Sb.)ii. 211, is probably corrupt; at hönd = á hönd, Grág. (Sb.) i. 135; at mót = at móti, v. this word.

☞ In compounds (v. below) at- or að- answers in turn to Lat. ad- or in- or con-; atdráttr e. g. denotes collecting; atkoma is adventus: it may also answer to Lat. ob-, in atburðr = accidence, but might also be compared with Lat. occurrere.

and að, the mark of the infinitive [cp. Goth. du; A. S. and Engl. to; Germ. zu]. Except in the case of a few verbs ‘at’ is always placed immediately before the infinitive, so as to be almost an inseparable part of the verb.

I. it is used either,

1. as, a simple mark of the infinitive, only denoting an action and independent of the subject, e. g. at ganga, at hlaupa, at vita, to go, to run, to know; or,

2. in an objective sense when following such verbs as bjóða segja…, to invite, command …; hann bauð þeim at ganga, at sitja, be bade, ordered them to go, sit, or the like; or as gefa and fá; gefa e-m at drekka, at eta, to give one to drink or to eat, etc. etc.

β. with the additional notion of intention, esp. when following verba cogitandi; hann ætlaði, hafði í hyggju at fara, he had it in his mind to go (where ‘to go’ is the real object to ætlaði and hafði í hyggju).

3. answering to the Gr. ινα, denoting intention, design, in order to; hann gékk í borg at kaupa silfr, in order to buy, Nj. 280; hann sendi riddara sína með þeim at varðveita þær, 623. 45: in order to make the phrase more plain, ‘svá’ and ‘til’ are frequently added, esp. in mod. writers, ‘svá at’ and contr. ‘svát’ (the last however is rare), ‘til at’ and ‘til þess at,’ etc.

II. in the earlier times the infin., as in Greek and Lat., had no such mark; and some verbs remain that cannot be followed by ‘at;’ these verbs are almost the same in Icel. as in Engl.:

α. the auxiliary verbs vil, mun ( μέλλω), skal; as in Engl. to is never used after the auxiliaries shall, will, must; ek vil ganga, I will go; ek mun fara, (as in North. E.) I mun go; ek skal göra þat, I shall do that, etc.

β. the verbs kunna, mega, as in Engl. I can or may do, I dare say; svá hygginn at hann kunni fyrir sökum ráða, Grág. ii. 75; í öllu er prýða má góðan höfðingja, Nj. 90; vera má, it may be; vera kann þat, id.: kunnu, however, takes ‘at’ whenever it means to know, and esp. in common language in phrases such as, það kann að vera, but vera kann þat, v. above.

γ. lata, biðja, as in Engl. to let, to bid; hann lét (bað) þá fara, he let (bade) them go.

δ. þykkja, þykjast, to seem; hann þykir vera, he is thought to be: reflex., hann þykist vera, sibi videtur: impers., mér þykir vera, mibi videtur, in all cases without ‘at.’ So also freq. the verbs hugsa, hyggja, ætla, halda, to think, when denoting merely the act of thinking; but if there be any notion of intention or purpose, they assume the ‘at;’ thus hann ætlaði, hugði, þá vera góða menn, he thought them to be, acc. c. inf.; but ætlaði at fara, meant to go, etc.

ε. the verbs denoting to see, bear; sjá, líta, horfa á … ( videre); heyra, audire, as in Engl. I saw them come, I heard him tell, ek sá þá koma, ek heyrði hann tala.

ζ. sometimes after the verbs eiga and ganga; hann gékk steikja, be went to roast, Vkv. 9; eiga, esp. when a mere periphrasis instead of skal, móður sína á maðr fyrst fram færa (better at færa), Grág. i. 232; á þann kvið einskis meta, 59; but at meta, id. l. 24; ráða, nema, göra …, freq. in poetry, when they are used as simple auxiliary verbs, e. g. nam hann sér Högna hvetja at rúnum, Skv. 3. 43.

η. hljóta and verða, when used in the sense of must (as in Engl. he must go), and when placed after the infin.of another verb; hér muntu vera hljóta, Nj. 129; but hljóta at vera: fara hlýtr þú, Fms. 1. 159; but þú hlýtr at fara: verða vita, ii. 146; but verða at vita: hann man verða sækja, þó verðr (= skal) maðr eptir mann lifa, Fms. viii. 19, Fas. ii. 552, are exceptional cases.

θ. in poetry, verbs with the verbal neg. suffix ‘-at,’ freq. for the case of euphony, take no mark of the infinitive, where it would be indispensable with the simple verb, vide Lex. Poët. Exceptional cases; hvárt sem hann vill ‘at’ verja þá sök, eða, whatever he chooses, either, Grág. i. 64; fyrr viljum vér enga kórónu at bera, en nokkut ófrelsi á oss at taka, we would rather bear no crown than …, Fms. x. 12; the context is peculiar, and the ‘at’ purposely added. It may be left out ellipt.; e. g. þá er guð gefr oss finnast (= at finnast), Dipl. ii. 14; gef honum drekka (= at drekka), Pr. 470; but mostly in unclassical writers, in deeds, or the like, written nastily and in an abrupt style.

and að, conj. [Goth. þatei = οτι; A. S. þät; Engl. that; Germ, dass; the Ormul. and Scot. at, see the quotations sub voce in Jamieson; in all South-Teutonic idioms with an initial dental: the Scandinavian idioms form an exception, having all dropped this consonant; Swed. åt, Dan. at]. In Icel. the Bible translation (of the 16th century) was chiefly based upon that of Luther; the hymns and the great bulk of theol. translations of that time were also derived from Germany; therefore the germanised form það frequently appears in the Bible, and was often employed by theol. authors in sermons since the time of the Reformation. Jón Vidalin, the greatest modern Icel. preacher, who died in 1720, in spite of his thoroughly classical style, abounds in the use of this form; but it never took root in the language, and has never passed into the spoken dialect. After a relative or demonstr. pronoun, it freq. in mod. writers assumes the form eð, hver eð, hverir eð, hvað eð, þar eð. Before the prep. þú (tu), þ changes into t, and is spelt in a single word attú, which is freq. in some MS.;—now, however, pronounced aððú, aððeir, aððið …, = að þú…, with the soft Engl. th sound. It gener. answers to Lat. ut, or to the relat. pron. qui.

I. that, relative to svá, to denote proportion, degree, so…, that, Lat. tam, tantus, tot…, ut; svá mikill lagamaðr, at…, so great a lawyer, that…, Nj. 1; hárið svá mikit, at þat…, 2; svá kom um síðir því máli, at Sigvaldi, it came so far, that…, Fms. xi. 95, Edda 33. Rarely and unclass., ellipt. without svá; Bæringr var til seinn eptir honum, at hann … (= svá at), Bær. 15; hlífði honum, at hann sakaði ekki, Fas. iii. 441.

II. it is used,

1. with indic, in a narrative sense, answering partly to Gr. οτι, Lat. quod, ut, in such phrases as, it came to pass, happened that …; þat var einhverju sinni, at Höskuldr hafði vinaboð, Nj. 2; þat var á palmdrottinsdag, at Ólafr konungr gékk út um stræti, Fms. ii. 244.

2. with subj. answering to Lat. acc. with infin., to mark the relation of an object to the chief verb, e. g. vilda ek at þú réðist, I wished that you would, Nj. 57.

β. or in an oblique sentence, answering to ita ut…; ef svá kann verða at þeir láti…, if it may be so that they might…, Fms. xi. 94.

γ. with a subj. denoting design, answering to ϊνα or Lat. ut with subj., in order that; at öll veraldar bygðin viti, ut sciat totus orbis, Stj.; þeir skáru fyrir þá melinn, at þeir dæi eigi af sulti, ut ne fame perirent, Nj. 265; fyrsti hlutr bókarinnar er Kristindómsbálkr, at menn skili, in order that men may understand, Gþl. p. viii.

III. used in connection with conjunctions,

1. esp. þó, því, svá; þó at freq. contr. þótt; svát is rare and obsolete.

α. þóat, þótt (North. E. ‘thof’), followed by a subjunctive, though, although, Lat. etsi, quamquam (very freq.); þóat nokkurum mönnum sýnist þetta með freku sett… þá viljum vér, Fms. vi. 21: phrases as, gef þú mér þó at úverðugri, etsi indignae (dat.), Stj. MS. col. 315, are unclass., and influenced by the Latin: sometimes ellipt. without ‘þó,’ eigi mundi hón þá meir hvata göngu sinni, at (= þóat) hon hraeddist bana sinn, Edda 7, Nj. 64: ‘þó’ and ‘at’ separated, svarar hann þó rétt, at hann svari svá, Grág. i. 23; þó er rétt at nýta, at hann sé fyrr skorinn, answering to Engl. yet—though, Lat. attamen —etsi, K. Þ. K.

β. því at, because, Lat. nam, quia, with indic.; því at allir vóru gerfiligir synir hans, Ld. 68; því at af íþróttum verðr maðr fróðr, Sks. 16: separated, því þegi ek, at ek undrumst, Fms. iii. 201; því er þessa getið, at þat þótti, it i s mentioned because …, Ld. 68.

γ. svá at, so that, Lat. ut, ita ut; grátrinn kom upp, svá at eingi mátti öðrum segja, Edda 37: separated, so … that, svá úsvúst at …, so bad weather, that, Bs. i. 339, etc.

2. it is freq. used superfluously, esp. after relatives; hver at = hverr, quis; því at = því, igitur; hverr at þekkr ok þægiligr mun verða, Fms. v. 159; hvern stvrk at hann mundi fá, 44; ek undrumst hvé mikil ógnarraust at liggr í þér, iii. 201; því at ek mátti eigi þar vera elligar, því at þar var kristni vel haldin, Fas. i. 340.

IV. as a relat. conj.:

1. temp, when, Lat. quum; jafnan er ( est) mér þá verra er ( quum) ek fer á braut þaðan, en þá at ( quum) ek kem, Grett. 150 A; þar til at vér vitum, till we know, Fms. v. 52; þá at ek lýsta (= þá er), when, Nj. 233.

2. since, because; ek færi yðr (hann), at þér eruð í einum hrepp allir, because of your being all of the same Rape, Grág. i. 260; eigi er kynlegt at ( though) Skarphéðinn sé hraustr, at þat er mælt at…, because (since) it is a saying that…, Nj. 64.

V. in mod. writers it is also freq. superfluously joined to the conjunctions, ef að = ef, si, (Lv. 45 is from a paper MS.), meðan að = meðan, dum; nema að, nisi; fyrst að = fyrst, quoniam; eptir að, síðan að, postquam; hvárt að = hvárt, Lat. an. In the law we find passages such as, þá er um er dæmt eina sök, at þá eigu þeir aptr at ganga í dóminn, Grág. i. 79; ef þing ber á hina helgu viku, at þat á eigi fyrir þeim málum at standa, 106; þat er ok, at þeir skulu reifa mál manna, 64; at þeir skulu með váttorð þá sök sækja, 65: in all these cases ‘at’ is either superfluous or, which is more likely, of an ellipt. nature, ‘the law decrees’ or ‘it is decreed’ being understood. The passages Sks. 551, 552, 568, 718 B, at lokit (= at ek hefi lokit), at hugleitt (= at ek hefi h.), at sent (= at ek hefi sent) are quite exceptional.

and að, an indecl. relat. pronoun [Ulf. þatei = ος, ος αν, οστις, οσπερ, οιος, etc.; Engl. that, Ormul. at], with the initial letter dropped, as in the conj. at, (cp. also the Old Engl. at, which is both a conj. and a pronoun, e. g. Barbour vi. 24 in Jamieson: ‘I drede that his gret wassalage, | And his travail may bring till end, | That at men quhilc full litil wend.’ | ‘His mestyr speryt quhat tithings a t he saw.’—Wyntoun v. 3. 89.) In Icel. ‘er’ (the relat. pronoun) and ‘at’ are used indifferently, so that where one MS. reads ‘er,’ another reads ‘at,’ and vice versâ; this may easily be seen by looking at the MSS.; yet as a rule ‘er’ is much more freq. used. In mod. writers ‘at’ is freq. turned into ‘eð,’ esp. as a superfluous particle after the relative pron. hverr (hver eð, hvað eð, hverir eð, etc.), or the demonstr. sá (sá eð, þeir eð, hinir eð, etc.):—who, which, that, enn bezta grip at ( which) hafði til Íslands komið, Ld. 202; en engi mun sá at ( cui) minnisamara mun vera, 242; sem blótnaut at ( quae) stærst verða, Fms. iii. 214; þau tiðendi, at mér þætti verri, Nj. 64, etc. etc.

n. collision (poët.); odda at, crossing of spears, crash of spears, Höfuðl. 8.

β. a fight or bait of wild animals, esp. of horses, v. hesta-at and etja.

the negative verbal suffix, v. -a.

* * *

a negative suffix to verbs, not;

era útmakligt, at it is not unmeet that.

* * *

á, prep., often used elliptically, or even adverbially, [Goth. ana; Engl. on; Germ. an. In the Scandinavian idioms the liquid n is absorbed. In English the same has been supposed to happen in adverbial phrases, e. g. ‘along, away, abroad, afoot, again, agate, ahead, aloft, alone, askew, aside, astray, awry,’ etc. It is indeed true that the Ormulum in its northern dialect freq. uses o, even in common phrases, such as ‘o boke, o land, o life, o slæpe, o strande, o write, o naht, o loft,’ etc., v. the glossary; and we may compare on foot and afoot, on sleep (Engl. Vers. of Bible) and asleep; A. S. a-butan and on-butan (about); agen and ongean (again, against); on bæc, aback; on life, alive; on middan, amid. But it is more than likely that in the expressions quoted above, as well as in numberless others, as well in old as in modern English, the English a- as well as the o- of the Ormulum and the modern Scottish and north of England o- are in reality remains of this very á pronounced au or ow, which was brought by the Scandinavian settlers into the north of England. In the struggle for supremacy between the English dialects after the Conquest, the Scandinavian form á or a won the day in many cases to the exclusion of the Anglo-Saxon on. Some of these adverbs have representatives only in the Scandinavian tongues, not in Anglo-Saxon; see below, with dat. B. II, C. VII; with acc. C. I. and VI. The prep. á denotes the surface or outside; í and ór the inside; at, til, and frá, nearness measured to or from an object: á thus answers to the Gr. επί; the Lat. in includes á and i together.]

With dat. and acc.: in the first case with the notion of remaining on a place, answering to Lat. in with abl.; in the last with the notion of motion to the place, = Lat. in with acc.

WITH DAT.

A. Loc.

I. generally on, upon; á gólfi, on the floor, Nj. 2; á hendi, on the hand (of a ring), 48, 225; á palli, 50; á steini, 108; á vegg, 115; á sjá ok á landi, on sea and land. In some instances the distinction between d and i is loose and wavering, but in most cases common sense and usage decide; thus ‘á bók’ merely denotes the letters, the penmanship, ‘í’ the contents of a book; mod. usage, however, prefers ‘í,’ lesa í bók, but stafr á bók. Old writers on the other hand; á bókum Enskum, in English books, Landn. 24, but í Aldafars bók, 23 (in the book De Mensurâ Temporum, by Bede), cp. Grág. i. 76, where á is a false reading instead of at; á bréfi, the contents of a letter: of clothing or arms, mítr á höfði, sverð á hlið, mitre on head, sword on side, Fms. i. 266, viii. 404; hafa lykil á sér, on one’s person, 655 xxvii. 22; möttull á tyglum, a mantle hanging on (i. e. fastened by) laces, Fms. vii. 201: á þingi means to be present at a meeting; í þingi, to abide within a jurisdiction; á himni, á jörðu, on (Engl. in) heaven and earth, e. g. in the Lord’s Prayer, but í helviti, in hell; á Gimli, Edda (of a heavenly abode); á báti, á skipi denote crew and cargo, ‘í’ the timber or materials of which a ship is built, Eg. 385; vera í stafni á skipi, 177: á skógi, to be abroad in a wood (of a hunter, robber, deer); but to be situated (a house), at work (to fell timber), í skógi, 573, Fs. 5, Fms. iii. 122, viii. 31, xi. 1, Glúm. 330, Landn. 173; á mörkinni, Fms. i. 8, but í mörk, of a farm; á firðinum means lying in a firth, of ships or islands (on the surface of the water), þær eyjar liggja á Breiðafirði, Ld. 36; but í firði, living in a district named Firth; á landi, Nj. 98, Fms. xi. 386.

II. á is commonly used in connection with the pr. names or countries terminating in ‘land,’ Engl. in, á Englandi, Írlandi, Skotlandi, Bretlandi, Saxlandi, Vindlandi, Vínlandi, Grænalandi, Íslandi, Hálogalandi, Rogalandi, Jótlandi, Frakklandi, Hjaltlandi, Jamtalandi, Hvítramannalandi, Norðrlöndum, etc., vide Landn. and the index to Fms. xii. In old writers í is here very rare, in modern authors more frequent; taste and the context in many instances decide. An Icelander would now say, speaking of the queen or king, ‘á Englandi,’ ruling over, but to live ‘í Englandi,’ or ‘á Englandi;’ the rule in the last case not being quite fixed.

2. in connection with other names of countries: á Mæri, Vörs, Ögðum, Fjölum, all districts of Norway, v. Landn.; á Mýrum (in Icel.), á Finnmörk, Landn., á Fjóni (a Danish island); but í Danmörk, Svíþjóð (á Svíþjóðu is poët., Gs. 13).

3. before Icel. farms denoting open and elevated slopes and spaces (not too high, because then ‘at’ must be used), such as ‘staðr, völlr, ból, hjalli, bakki, heimr, eyri,’ etc.; á Veggjum, Landn. 69; á Hólmlátri, id.: those ending in ‘-staðr,’ á Geirmundarstöðum, Þórisstöðum, Jarðlangsstöðum…, Landn.: ‘-völlr,’ á Möðruvöllum: á Fitjum (the farm) í Storð (the island), í Fenhring (the island) á Aski (the farm), Landn., Eg.: ‘-nes’ sometimes takes á, sometimes í (in mod. usage always ‘í’), á Nesi, Eb. 14, or í Krossnesi, 30; in the last case the notion of island, νησος, prevails: so also, ‘fjörðr,’ as, þeir börðust á Vigrafirði (of a fight o n the ice), Landn. 101, but orusta í Hafrsfirði, 122: with ‘-bær,’ á is used in the sense of a farm or estate, hón sa á e-m bæ mikit hús ok fagrt, Edda 22; ‘í bæ’ means within doors, of the buildings: with ‘Bær’ as pr. name Landn. uses ‘í,’ 71, 160, 257, 309, 332.

4. denoting on or just above; of the sun, when the time is fixed by regarding the sun in connection with points in the horizon, a standing phrase in Icel.; sól á gjáhamri, when the sun is on the crag of the Rift, Grág. i. 26, cp. Glúm. 387; so, brú á á, a bridge on a river, Fms. viii. 179, Hrafn. 20; taka hús á e-m, to surprise one, to take the house over his head, Fms. i. 11.

III. á is sometimes used in old writers where we should now expect an acc., esp. in the phrase, leggja sverði (or the like) á e-m, or á e-m miðjum, to stab, Eg. 216, Gísl. 106, Band. 14; þá stakk Starkaðr sprotanum á konungi, then Starkad stabbed the king with the wand, Fas. iii. 34; bíta á kampi (vör), to bite the lips, as a token of pain or emotion, Nj. 209, 68; taka á e-u, to touch a thing, lay hold of it, v. taka; fá á e-u, id. (poët.); leggja hendr á (better at) síðum, in wrestling, Fms. x. 331; koma á úvart á e-m, to come on one unawares, ix. 407 (rare).

B. TEMP. of a particular point or period of time, at, on, in:

I. gener. denoting during, in the course of; á nótt, degi, nætrþeli …, Bs. i. 139; or spec. adding a pron. or an adject., á næsta sumri, the next summer; á því ári, þingi, misseri, hausti, vári, sumri …, during, in that year …, Bs. i. 679, etc.; á þrem sumrum, in the course of three summers, Grág. i. 218; á þrem várum, Fms. ii. 114; á hálfs mánaðar fresti, within half a month’s delay, Nj. 99; á tvítugs, sextugs … aldri, á barns, gamals aldri, etc., at the age of …, v. aldr: á dögum e-s, in the days of, in his reign or time, Landn. 24, Hrafn. 3, Fms. ix. 229.

II. used of a fixed recurrent period or season; á várum, sumrum, haustum, vetrum, á kveldum, every spring, summer …, in the evenings, Eg. 711, Fms. i. 23, 25, vi. 394, Landn. 292: with the numeral adverbs, cp. Lat. ter in anno, um sinn á mánuði, ári, once a month, once a year, where the Engl. a is not the article but the preposition, Grág. i. 89.

III. of duration; á degi, during a whole day, Fms. v. 48; á sjau nóttum, Bárð. 166; á því meli, during that time, in the meantime, Grág. i. 259.

IV. connected with the seasons (á vetri, sumri, vári, hausti), ‘á’ denotes the next preceding season, the last winter, summer, autumn, Eb. 40, 238, Ld. 206: in such instances ‘á’ denotes the past, ‘at’ the future, ‘í’ the present; thus í vetri in old writers means this winter; á vetri, last winter; at vetri, next winter, Eb. 68 (in a verse), etc.

C. In various other relations, more or less metaphorically, on, upon, in, to, with, towards, against:

I. denoting object, in respect of, against, almost periphrastically; dvelja á náðum e-s, under one’s protection, Fms. i. 74; hafa metnað á e-u, to be proud of, to take pride in a thing, 127.

2. denoting a personal relation, in; bæta e-t á e-m, to make amends, i. e. to one personally; misgöra e-t á e-m, to inflict wrong on one; hafa elsku (hatr) á e-m, to bear love ( hatred) to one, Fms. ix. 242; hefna sín á e-m, to take revenge on one’s person, on anyone; rjúfa sætt á e-m, to break truce on the person of any one, to offend against his person, Nj. 103; hafa sár á sér, 101; sjá á e-m, to read on or in one’s face; sér hann á hverjum manni hvárt til þín er vel eðr illa, 106; var þat brátt auðséð á hennar högum, at …, it could soon be seen in all her doings, that …, Ld. 22.

3. also generally to shew signs of a thing; sýna fáleika á sér, to shew marks of displeasure, Nj. 14, Fs. 14; taka vel, illa, lítt, á e-u, to take a thing well, ill, or indifferently, id.; finna á sér, to feel in oneself; fann lítt á honum, hvárt …, it could hardly be seen in his face, whether …, Eb. 42; líkindi eru á, it is likely, Ld. 172; göra kost á e-u, to give a choice, chance of it, 178; eiga vald á e-u, to have power over …, Nj. 10.

II. denoting encumbrance, duty, liability; er fimtardómsmál á þeim, to be subject to …, Nj. 231; the phrase, hafa e-t á hendi, or vera á hendi e-m, on one’s hands, of work or duty to be done; eindagi á fé, term, pay day, Grág. i. 140; ómagi (skylda, afvinna) á fé, of a burden or encumbrance, D. I. and Grág. in several passages.

III. with a personal pronoun, sér, mér, honum …, denoting personal appearance, temper, character, look, or the like; vera þungr, léttr … á sér, to be heavy or light, either bodily or mentally; þungr á sér, corpulent, Sturl. i. 112; kátr ok léttr á sér, of a gay and light temper, Fms. x. 152; þat bragð hafði hann á sér, he looked as if, … the expression of his face was as though …, Ld., cp. the mod. phrase, hafa á sér svip, bragð, æði, sið, of one’s manner or personal appearance, to bear oneself as, or the like; skjótr (seinn) á fæti, speedy ( slow) of foot, Nj. 258.

IV. as a periphrasis of the possessive pronoun connected with the limbs or parts of the body. In common Icel. such phrases as my hands, eyes, head … are hardly ever used, but höfuð, eyru, hár, nef, munnr, hendr, fætr … á mér; so ‘í’ is used of the internal parts, e. g. hjarta, bein … í mér; the eyes are regarded as inside the body, augun í honum: also without the possessive pronoun, or as a periphrasis for a genitive, brjóstið á e-m, one’s breast, Nj. 95, Edda 15; súrnar í augum, it smarts in my eyes, my eyes smart, Nj. 202; kviðinn á sér, its belly, 655 xxx. 5, Fms. vi. 350; hendr á henni, her hands, Gísl. (in a verse); í vörunum á honum, on his lips, Band. 14; ristin á honum, his step, Fms. viii. 141; harðr í tungu, sharp of tongue, Hallfred (Fs. 114); kalt (heitt) á fingrum, höndum, fótum …, cold ( warm) in the fingers, hands, feet …, i. e. with cold fingers, etc.; cp. also the phrase, verða vísa (orð) á munni, of extemporising verses or speeches, freq. in the Sagas; fastr á fótum, fast by the leg, of a bondsman, Nj. 27: of the whole body, díla fundu þeir á honum, 209. The pers. pron. is used only in solemn style (poetry, hymns, the Bible), and perhaps only when influenced by foreign languages, e. g. mitt hjarta hví svo hryggist þú, as a translation of ‘warumb betrübst du dich mein Herz?’ the famous hymn by Hans Sachs; instead of the popular hjartað í mér, Sl. 43, 44: hjartað mitt is only used as a term of endearment, as by a husband to his wife, parents to their child, or the like, in a metaphorical sense; the heart proper is ‘í mér,’ not ‘mitt.’

2. of other things, and as a periphrasis of a genitive, of a part belonging to the whole, e. g. dyrr á husi = húsdyrr, at the house-doors; turn á kirkju = kirkju turn; stafn, skutr, segl, árar … á skipi, the stem, stern, sail … of a ship, Fms. ix. 135; blöð á lauk, á tré …, leaves of a leek, of a tree …, Fas. i. 469; egg á sverði = sverðs egg; stafr á bók; kjölr á bók, and in endless other instances.

V. denoting instrumentality, by, on, or a-, by means of; afla fjár á hólmgöngum, to make money a-duelling, by means of duels, Eg. 498; á verkum sínum, to subsist on one’s own work, Njarð. 366: as a law term, sekjast á e-ju, to be convicted upon …, Grág. i. 123; sekst maðr þar á sínu eigini ( a man is guilty in re sua), ef hann tekr af þeim manni er heimild ( possessio) hefir til, ii. 191; falla á verkum sínum, to be killed flagranti delicto, v. above; fella e-n á bragði, by a sleight in wrestling; komast undan á flótta, to escape by flight, Eg. 11; á hlaupi, by one’s feet, by speed, Hkr. ii. 168; lifa á e-u, to feed on; bergja á e-u, to taste of a thing; svala sér á e-u, to quench the thirst on.

VI. with subst. numerals; á þriðja tigi manna, up to thirty, i. e. from about twenty to thirty, Ld. 194; á öðru hundraði skipa, from one to two hundred sail strong, Fms. x. 126; á níunda tigi, between eighty and ninety years of age, Eg. 764, v. above: used as prep., á hendi, on one’s hand, i. e. bound to do it, v. hönd.

VII. in more or less adverbial phrases it may often be translated in Engl. by a participle and a- prefixed; á lopti, aloft; á floti, afloat; á lífi, alive; á verðgangi, a-begging; á brautu, away; á baki, a-back, behind, past; á milli, a-tween; á laun, alone, secretly; á launungu, id.; á móti, against; á enda, at an end, gone; á huldu, hidden; fara á hæli, to go a-heel, i. e. backwards, Fms. vii. 70;—but in many cases these phrases are transl. by the Engl. partic. with a, which is then perh. a mere prefix, not a prep., á flugi, a-flying in the air, Nj. 79; vera á gangi, a-going; á ferli, to be about; á leiki, a-playing, Fms. i. 78; á sundi, a-swimming, ii. 27; á verði, a-watching, x. 201; á hrakningi, a-wandering; á reiki, a-wavering; á skjálfi, a-shivering; á-hleri, a-listening; á tali, a-talking, Ísl. ii. 200; á hlaupi, a-running, Hkr. ii. 268; á verki, a-working; á veiðum, a-hunting; á fiski, a-fishing; á beit, grazing: and as a law term it even means in flagranti, N. G. L. i. 348.

VIII. used absolutely without a case in reference to the air or the weather, where ‘á’ is almost redundant; þoka var á mikil, a thick fog came on, Nj. 267; niðamyrkr var á, pitch darkness came on, Eg. 210; allhvast á norðan, a very strong breeze from the north, Fms. ix. 20; þá var á norðrænt, a north wind came on, 42, Ld. 56; hvaðan sem á er, from whatever point the wind is; var á hríð veðrs, a snow storm came on, Nj. 282; görði á regn, rain came on, Fms. vi. 394, xi. 35, Ld. 156.

WITH ACC.

A. Loc.

I. denoting simple direction towards, esp. connected with verbs of motion, going, or the like; hann gékk á bergsnös, Eg. 389; á hamar, Fas. ii. 517.

2. in phrases denoting direction; liggja á útborða, lying on the outside of the ship, Eg. 354; á annat borð skipinu, Fms. vii. 260; á bæði borð, on both sides of the ship, Nj. 124, Ld. 56; á tvær hliðar, on both sides, Fms. v. 73. Ísl. ii. 159; á hlið, sidewards; út á hlið, Nj. 262, Edda 44; á aðra hönd henni, Nj. 50, Ld. 46; höggva á tvær hendr, to hew or strike right and left, Ísl. ii. 368, Fas. i. 384, Fms. viii. 363, x. 383.

3. upp á, upon; hann tók augu Þjaza ok kastaði upp á himin, Edda 47: with verbs denoting to look, see, horfa, sjá, líta, etc.; hann rak skygnur á land, he cast glances towards the land, Ld. 154.

II. denoting direction with or without the idea of arriving:

1. with verbs denoting to aim at; of a blow or thrust, stefna á fótinn, Nj. 84; spjótið stefnir á hann miðjan, 205: of the wind, gékk veðrit á vestr, the wind veered to west, Fms. ix. 28; sigla á haf, to stand out to sea, Hkr. i. 146, Fms. i. 39: with ‘út’ added, Eg. 390, Fms. x. 349.

2. conveying the notion of arriving, or the intervening space being traversed; spjótið kom á miðjan skjöldinn, Eg. 379, Nj. 96, 97; langt upp á land, far up inland, Hkr. i. 146: to reach, taka ofan á belti, of the long locks of a woman, to reach down to the belt, Nj. 2; ofan á bringu, 48; á þa ofan, 91.

III. without reference to the space traversed, connected with verbs denoting to go, turn, come, ride, sail, throw, or the like, motion of every kind; hann kastar honum á völlinn, he flings him down, Nj. 91; hlaupa á skip sitt, to leap on board his ship, 43; á hest, to mount quickly, Edda 75; á lend hestinum, Nj. 91; hann gengr á sáðland sitt, he walks on to his fields, 82: on, upon, komast á fætr, to get upon one’s legs, 92; ganga á land, to go a-shore, Fms. i. 40; ganga á þing, vii. 242, Grág. (often); á skóg, á merkr ok skóga, into a wood, Fb. i. 134, 257, Fms. xi. 118, Eg. 577, Nj. 130; fara á Finnmörk, to go travelling in Finmark, Fms. i. 8; koma, fara á bæ, to arrive at the farm-house; koma á veginn, Eg. 578; stíga á bát, skip, to go on board, 158; hann gékk upp á borg, he went up to the burg (castle), 717; en er þeir komu á loptriðið, 236; hrinda skipum á vatn, to float the ships down into the water, Fms. i. 58; reka austr á haf, to drift eastwards on the sea, x. 145; ríða ofan á, to ride down or over, Nj. 82.

IV. in some cases the acc. is used where the dat. would be used, esp. with verbs denoting to see or hear, in such phrases as, þeir sá boða mikinn inn á fjörðinn, they saw great breakers away up in the bight of the firth, the acc. being due perhaps to a motion or direction of the eye or ear towards the object, Nj. 124; sá þeir fólkit á land, they saw the people in the direction of land, Fas. ii. 517: in phrases denoting to be placed, to sit, to be seated, the seat or bench is freq. in the acc. where the dat. would now be used; konungr var þar á land upp, the king was then up the country, the spectator or narrator is conceived as looking from the shore or sea-side, Nj. 46; sitja á miðjan bekk, to be seated on the middle bench, 50; skyldi konungs sæti vera á þann bekk … annat öndvegi var á hinn úæðra pall; hann setti konungs hásæti á miðjan þverpall, Fms. vi. 439, 440, cp. Fagrsk. l. c., Sturl. iii. 182; eru víða fjallbygðir upp á mörkina, in the mark or forest, Eg. 58; var þar mörk mikil á land upp, 229; mannsafnaðr er á land upp (viewed from the sea), Ld. 76; stóll var settr á mótið, Fas. i. 58; beiða fars á skip, to beg a passage, Grág. i. 90.

V. denoting parts of the body; bíta e-n á barka, to bite one in the throat, Ísl. ii. 447; skera á háls, to cut the throat of any one, Nj. 156; brjóta e-n á háls, to break any one’s neck; brjóta e-n á bak, to break any one’s back, Fms. vii. 119; kalinn á kné, frozen to the knees with cold, Hm. 3.

VI. denoting round; láta reipi á háls hesti, round his horse’s neck, 623. 33; leggja söðul á hest, Nj. 83; and ellipt., leggja á, to saddle; breiða feld á hofuð sér, to wrap a cloak over his head, 164; reyta á sik mosa, to gather moss to cover oneself with, 267; spenna hring á hönd, á fingr, Eg. 300.

VII. denoting a burden; stela mat á tvá hesta, hey á fimtán hesta, i. e. a two, a fifteen horse load, Nj. 74: metaph., kjósa feigð á menn, to choose death upon them, i. e. doom them to death, Edda 22.

B. TEMP.

I. of a period of time, at, to; á morgun, to-morrow (í morgun now means the past morning, the morning of to-day), Ísl. ii. 333.

II. if connected with the word day, ‘á’ is now used before a fixed or marked day, a day of the week, a feast day, or the like; á Laugardag, á Sunnudag …, on Saturday, Sunday, the Old Engl. a-Sunday, a-Monday, etc.; á Jóladaginn, Páskadaginn, on Yule and Easter-day; but in old writers more often used ellipt. Sunnudaginn, Jóladaginn …, by dropping the prep. ‘á,’ Fms. viii. 397, Grág. i. 18.

III. connected with ‘dagr’ with the definite article suffixed, ‘á’ denotes a fixed, recurring period or season, in; á daginn, during the day-time, every day in turn, Grett. 91 A.

IV. connected with ‘evening, morning, the seasons,’ with the article; á kveldit, every evening, Ld. 14; á sumarit, every summer, Vd. 128, where the new Ed. Fs. 51 reads sumrum; á haust, every autumn, Eg. 741 (perh. a misprint instead of á haustin or á haustum); á vetrinn, in the winter time, 710; á várit, every spring, Gþl. 347; the sing., however, is very rare in such cases, the old as well as mod. usage prefers the plur.; á nætrnar, by night, Nj. 210; á várin, Eg. 710; á sumrin, haustin, á morgnana, in the morning (á morgin, sing., means to-morrow); á kveldin, in the evening, only ‘dagr’ is used in sing., v. above (á daginn, not á dagana); but elliptically and by dropping the article, Icelanders say, kveld og morgna, nótt og dag, vetr sumar vor og haust, in the same sense as those above mentioned.

V. denoting duration, the article is dropped in the negative phrase, aldri á sinn dag, never during one’s life; aldri á mína daga, never in my life, Bjarn. 8, where a possess. pron. is put between noun and prep., but this phrase is very rare. Such phrases as, á þann dag, that day, and á þenna dag, Stj. 12, 655 xxx. 2. 20, are unclassical.

VI. á dag without article can only be used in a distributive sense, e. g. tvisvar á dag, twice a-day; this use is at present freq. in Icel., yet instances from old writers are not on record.

VII. denoting a movement onward in time, such as, liðið á nótt, dag, kveld, morgun, sumar, vetr, vár, haust (or nóttina, daginn …), jól, páska, föstu, or the like, far on in the night, day …, Edda 33; er á leið vetrinn, when the winter was well on, as the winter wore on, Nj. 126; cp. áliðinn: also in the phrase, hniginn á inn efra aldr, well stricken in years, Ld. 68.

C. Metaph. and in various relations:

I. somewhat metaphorically, denoting an act only (not the place); fara á fund, á vit e-s, to call for one, Eg. 140; koma á ræðu við e-n, to come to a parley with, to speak, 173; ganga á tal, Nj. 103; skora á hólm, to challenge to a duel on an island; koma á grið, to enter into a service, to be domiciled, Grág. i. 151; fara á veiðar, to go a-hunting, Fms. i. 8.

β. generally denoting on, upon, in, to; bjóða vöxtu á féit, to offer interest on the money, Grág. i. 198; ganga á berhögg, to come to blows, v. berhögg; fá á e-n, to make an impression upon one, Nj. 79; ganga á vápn e-s, to throw oneself on an enemy’s weapon, meet him face to face, Rd. 310; ganga á lagið, to press on up the spear-shaft after it has passed through one so as to get near one’s foe, i. e. to avail oneself of the last chance; bera fé á e-n, to bribe, Nj. 62; bera öl á e-n, to make drunk, Fas. i. 13; snúinn á e-t, inclined to, Fms. x. 142; sammælast á e-t, to agree upon, Nj. 86; sættast, verða sáttr á e-t, in the same sense, to come to an agreement, settlement, or atonement, 78, Edda 15, Eb. 288, Ld. 50, Fms. i. 279; ganga á mála, to serve for pay as a soldier, Nj. 121; ganga á vald e-s, to put oneself in his power, 267; ganga á sætt, to break an agreement; vega á veittar trygðir, to break truce, Grág. ii. 169.

II. denoting in regard to, in respect to:

1. of colour, complexion, the hue of the hair, or the like; hvítr, jarpr, dökkr … á hár, having white, brown, or dark … hair, Ísl. ii. 190, Nj. 39; svartr á brún ok brá, dark of brow and eyebrow; dökkr á hörund, id., etc.

2. denoting skill, dexterity; hagr á tré, a good carpenter; hagr á járn, málm, smíðar …, an expert worker in iron, metals …, Eg. 4; fimr á boga, good at the bow: also used of mastership in science or arts, meistari á hörpuslátt, a master in striking the harp, Fas. iii. 220; fræðimaðr á kvæði, knowing many poems by heart, Fms. vi. 391; fræðimaðr á landnámssögur ok forna fræði, a learned scholar in histories and antiquities (of Are Frode), Ísl. ii. 189; mikill á íþrótt, skilful in an art, Edda (pref.) 148; but dat. in the phrase, kunna (vel) á skíðum, to be a cunning skater, Fms. i. 9, vii. 120.

3. denoting dimensions; á hæð, lengd, breidd, dýpt …, in the heighth, length, breadth, depth …, Eg. 277; á hvern veg, on each side, Edda 41 (square miles); á annan veg, on the one side, Grág. i. 89.

β. the phrase, á sik, in regard to oneself, vel (illa) á sik kominn, of a fine ( ugly) appearance, Ld. 100, Fas. iii. 74.

III. denoting instrumentality; bjargast á sínar hendr, to live on the work of one’s own hands, (á sínar spýtur is a mod. phrase in the same sense); (vega) á skálir, pundara, to weigh in scales, Grág. ii. 370; at hann hefði tvá pundara, ok hefði á hinn meira keypt en á hinn minna selt, of a man using two scales, a big one for buying and a little one for selling, Sturl. i. 91; á sinn kostnað, at one’s own expense; nefna e-n á nafn, by name, Grág. i. 17, etc. The Icel. also say, spinna á rokk, snældu, to spin on or with a rock or distaff; mala á kvern, to grind in a ‘querne,’ where Edda 73 uses dat.; esp. of musical instruments, syngja, leika á hljóðfæri, hörpu, gígju …; in the old usage, leika hörpu …, Stj. 458.

IV. denoting the manner or way of doing:

1. á þessa lund, in this wise, Grág. ii. 22; á marga vega, á alla, ymsa vega, in many, all, respects, Fms. i. 114; á sitt hóf, in its turn, respectively, Ld. 136, where the context shews that the expression answers to the Lat. mutatis mutandis; á Þýðersku, after German fashion, Sks. 288.

2. esp. of language; mæla, rita á e-a tungu, to speak, write in a tongue; á Írsku, in Irish, Ld. 76; Norrænu, in Norse, Eb. 330, Vm. 35; a Danska tungu, in Danish, i. e. Scandinavian, Norse, or Icelandic, Grág. i. 18; á Vára tungu, i. e. in Icelandic, 181; rita á Norræna tungu, to write in Norse, Hkr. (pref.), Bs. i. 59:—at present, dat. is sometimes used.

3. in some phrases the acc. is used instead of the dat.; hann sýndi á sik mikit gaman, Fms. x. 329; hann lét ekki á sik finna, he shewed no sign of motion, Nj. 111; skaltú önga fáleika á þik gera (Cod. Kalf.), 14.

V. used in a distributive sense; skal mörk kaupa gæzlu á kú, eðr oxa fim vetra gamlan, a mark for every cow, Grág. i. 147; alin á hvert hross, 442; á mann, per man (now freq.): cp. also á dag above, lit. B.

VI. connected with nouns,

1. prepositional; á hendr (with dat.), against; á hæla, at heel, close behind; á bak, at back, i. e. past, after; á vit (with gen.), towards.

2. adverbially; á braut, away, abroad; á víxl, in turns; á mis, amiss; á víð ok dreif, a-wide and a-drift, i. e. dispersedly.

3. used almost redundantly before the following prep.; á eptir, after, behind; á undan, in front of; á meðal, á milli, among; á mót, against; á við, about, alike; á frá (cp. Swed. ifrån), from (rare); á fyrir = fyrir, Haustl. 1; á hjá, beside (rare); á fram, a-head, forwards; á samt, together; ávalt = of allt, always: following a prep., upp á, upon; niðr á, down upon; ofan á, eptir á, post eventum, (temp.) á eptir is loc., id., etc.

VII. connected with many transitive verbs, answering to the Lat. ad- or in-, in composition, in many cases periphrastically for an objective case. The prep. generally follows after the verb, instead of being prefixed to it as in Lat., and answers to the Engl. on, to; heita kalla, hrópa á, to call on; heyra, hlusta, hlyða á, to hearken to, listen to; hyggja, hugsa á, to think on; minna á, to remind; sjá, líta, horfa, stara, mæna, glápa, koma auga … á, to look on; girnast á, to wish for; trúa á, to believe on; skora á, to call on any one to come out, challenge; kæra á, to accuse; heilsa á, to greet; herja, ganga, ríða, hlaupa, ráða … á, to fall on, attack, cp. ágangr, áreið, áhlaup; ljúga á, to tell lies of, to slander; telja á, to carp at; ausa, tala, hella, kasta, verpa … á, to pour, throw on; ríða, bera, dreifa á, to sprinkle on; vanta, skorta á, to fall short of; ala á, to plead, beg; leggja á, to throw a spell on, lay a saddle on; hætta á, to venture on; gizka á, to guess at; kveða á, to fix on, etc.: in a reciprocal sense, haldast á, of mutual strife; sendast á, to exchange presents; skrifast á, to correspond (mod.); kallast á, to shout mutually; standast á, to coincide, so as to be just opposite one another, etc.

f. [Lat. aqua; Goth. ahva; Hel. aha; A. S. eâ; O. H. G. aha, owa; cp. Germ. ach and aue; Fr. eau, eaux; Engl. Ax-, Ex-, etc., in names of places; Swed.-Dan. å; the Scandinavians absorb the hu, so that only a single vowel or diphthong remains of the whole word]:—a river. The old form in nom. dat. acc. sing. is , v. the introduction to A, page 1, Bs. i. 333 sq., where ́n, ́ (acc.), and ́na; so also Greg. 677; the old fragm. of Grág. ii. 222, 223, new Ed. In the Kb. of the Edda the old form occurs twice, viz. page 75, ́na (acc.), (but two lines below, ána), í ́nni (dat.) The old form also repeatedly occurs in the Kb. and Sb. of the Grág., e. g. ii. 266, 267: gen. sing. ár; nom. pl. ár, gen. á contracted, dat. ám, obsolete form ́m; Edda 43, Eg. 80, 99, 133, 185: proverbs, at ósi skal á stemma, answering to the Lat. principiis obsta, Edda 60; hér kemr á til sæfar, here the river runs into the sea, metaph. = this is the very end, seems to have been a favourite ending of old poems; it is recorded in the Húsdrápa and the Norðsetadrápa, v. Edda 96, Skálda 198; cp. the common saying, oil vötn renna til sævar, ‘all waters run into the sea.’ Rivers with glacier water are in Icel. called Hvítá, White river, or Jökulsá: Hitá, Hot river, from a hot spring, opp. to Kaldá, v. Landn.: others take a name from the fish in them, as Laxá, Lax or Salmon river (freq.); Örriða á, etc.: a tributary river is þverá, etc.: ár in the Njála often means the great rivers Ölfusá and Þjórsá in the south of Iceland. Áin helga, a river in Sweden, Hkr. ii: á is also suffixed to the names of foreign rivers, Tempsá = Thames; Dóná, Danube (Germ. Don-au), (mod.), etc. Vide Edda (Gl.) 116, 117, containing the names of over a hundred North-English and Scottish rivers.

COMPDS: áráll, árbakki, árbrot, ardjúp, árfarvegr, árfors, árgljúfr, árhlutr, ármegin, árminni, ármót, áróss, árreki, árstraumr, árströnd, árvað, árvegr, árvöxtr.

1) so, thus;

ertu Íslenzkr maðr? — hann sagði, at svá var, he said it was so;

svá er sagt, at, it is told that;

2) joined with another particle, svá … ok, both … and;

svá starf ok torveldi, both toil and trouble;

svá ráns-maðrinn ok okrkarlinn, the robber as well as the usurer;

ok svá, and also, as also;

sumarit ok svá um vetrinn, the summer, as also the winter;

fögr augu ok svá snarlig, fair eyes and also sharp;

3) so, denoting degree (œrit mun hann stórvirkr, en eigi veit ek, hvárt hann er svá góðvirkr);

Gunnarr spyrr, hví Njáli þœtti þetta svá úráðligt, why he thought this so unwise;

ekki meirr en svá, not more than so, so and no more;

4) followed by an adjective and ‘at’, svá ríkr, góðr, mikill, margir, fáir … at, so mighty, good, great, many, few … that;

svá at, so that;

kaldr (sjúkr) svá, at, so cold (sick) that;

contracted ‘svát’, svát ek muna, that (so far as) I remember;

with a gen., Hallfreðr er svá manna, at ek skil sízt, H. is such a man as I never can make out;

hón er svá kvenna (= hón er svá af konum), at mér er mest um at eiga, she is just such a woman as I most want;

5) svá … sem, as … as;

hárit var svá fagrt sem silki, as fair (soft) as silk;

svá vel sem þér ferr, well as thou behavest;

6) so, then (gengu þeir norðr yfir hálsinn ok svá fram á Rastarkálf);

7) joined to an a. or adv., about, pretty much;

slíkar svá fortölur, somewhat such persuasion;

þat mun þó svá nær fara, yet it will be just on the verge of that;

nakkvat svá, somewhat so;

fegnir nakkvat (nökkut) svá, rather glad;

mjök svá, almost, very nearly, all but (mjök svá kominn at bana).

* * *

adv., so in old rhymes in the 13th century, e. g. svá and gá, Mkv. 20; svá and á, Ht. 82; later form svó (freq. in the 14th and 15th centuries); whence svo, and lastly so: [a common Teut. particle; Ulf. swê; A. S. swâ; Engl. and Germ. so; Dan. saa.]

B. So, thus; ertú Íslenzkr maðr?—Hann sagði at svá var, he said it was so, Nj. 6; beiddi Þorsteinn Atla at … Hann görði svá, he did so, Ísl. ii. 193; nú görðu þeir svá, so they did, Fms. x. 238; eigi görr enn svá, ‘not farther than so,’ only so far, Grág. i. 136; þeir heita svá, thus, Edda, Hom. 141; ef þú vill eigi segja mér, ok farir þú svá (thus, i. e. without letting me know) héðan, Fms. vii. 30; þeir segja svá Ólafi konungi, at …, iii. 181; svá er sagt, at …, it is told, that …, vi. 3.

2. joined with another particle; svá ok, so also, also; svá skal ok ætla þeim er þá kömr við, Grág. i. 235; svá ráns-maðrinn ok okrkarlinn, the robber as well as the usurer, Mar.; öll landráð, svá lögmál ok sættar-görðir, the law as well as the s., Sks. 13 B; svá starf ok torveldi, both toil and trouble, Fms. vii. 221; ok svá, and also, as also; höfuð hans ok svá marga dýrgripi, Eg. 86; sumarit ok svá um vetrinn, the summer, as also the winter, Fms. xi. 51; fögr augu ok svá snarlig, fair eyes and also sharp, i. 102; ekki líkr yfirlits föður sínum ok svá í skaplyndi (here ok svá is adversative = né), x. 266; í Suðrlöndum ok svá norðr, Þiðr.; þeir minntu konung opt á þat, ok svá þat með, at…, Eg. 85; ok hlaða svá veggi, and also make the walls, Grág. ii. 336; austr undir Eyjafjöll ok svá austr í Holt, and so also east of H., Nj. 261.

II. so, denoting degree; ærit man hann stórvirkr, en eigi veit ok hvárt hann er svá ( equally) góðvirkr, Nj. 55: with a compar., eigi getr nær enn svá, it is not to be got nearer than so, Clem. 46; ekki meirr enn svá, not more than so, so and not more, with an adverse notion; ekki þótta ek nú dæll meirr enn svá, Fms. xi. 91; eigi fengiligri enn svá, Sturl. i. 159.

2. svá followed by an adjective and ‘at;’ svá ríkr, góðr, mikill, margr, fáir … at, so mighty, good, great, many, few … that, Nj. 1, Fms. i. 3, passim; svá at, so that, contracted svát (as þótt for þó at), see ‘at’ III. γ (p. 29, col. 2): the svá put after the adjective, kaldr svá at, so cold that, Edda (pref.); ástblindir svá, Mkv.; sjúkr svá, at ( so sick that) hann sé kominn at bana, Fms. xi. 158: with a gen., Hallfreðr er svá manna, at ek skil sízt hvat manna at er, H. is such a man as I never can make out, Fs. 98; hón er svá kvenna, at mér er mest um at eiga just such a woman as I like best, Ld. 302; hón er svá meyja í Noregi, at ek vilda helzt eiga, Fms. v. 310.

3. svá sem, so as, as; þjóna honum svá sem börn föður, Edda 13; ok svá sem hón er sterk, þá mon hón brotna, er …, strong as it(the bridge) is, it will break when …, 8 (see sem); hárit var svá fagrt sem silki, fair as silk, Nj. 2; þeim konungi sem svá er góðr ok rétt víss sem Ingi, i. e. so very good and just a king, Fms. vii. 263; svá vel sem þér ferr, well as thou behavest, Nj. 225.

4. the phrase, gör svá vel, be so good as to, I pray thee! Nj. 111, Fms. vii. 157; göri guðin þá svá vel, láti mik eigi bíða, Al. 106.

5. in greeting; heill svá! 623. 17; heilir svá, Stj. 124, 475, Karl. 507; ek svá heill! Fms. v. 230; svá vil ek heil! Grett. 170 new Ed; farit ér í svá gramendr allir! Dropl. 23.

III. slíkr svá, nokkur svá, því-líkr svá, mjök svá, somewhat so, much in that way, about so; slíkum svá fortölum, such a persuasion, Al. 33; ekki meira enn slíkt svá, not more than so, Fms. v. 308; þvílíkum svá mönnum, sem þit erut, Eg. 739; þiggja gjafar at slíkum svá mönnum, Fms. vi. 99; nakkvat svá, somewhat so, xi. 11; fegnir nokkut svá, i. e. rather glad, quite glad, viii. 27 (v. l. mjök svá, very); mjök svá, almost, very nearly, all but; hafa lokit mjök svá heyverkum, Ísl. ii. 329; mjök svá kominn at landi, Fms. i. 212; mjök svá kominn at bana, 158; mjök svá feginn, viii. 27, v. l.; allmjök svá, v. 320.

2. the phrases, svá-gurt, see soguru and göra (F. III); svá-búit, see búa (B. II. 2. δ): svá-nær, so near, i. e. quite near; þat mun þó svá nær fara, it will be quite on the verge of that, Nj. 49; ef barn elsk svá-nær Páskum, just before Easter, K. Þ. K. 7 new Ed.; lagði þá svá nær, at…, Nj. 163; hafði svá nær, at, 160.

* * *

1) even; jöfn tala, even number;

2) equal, the same; þínar (viz. ferðir) verða flestar jafnastar, thy doings are mostly the same, all equally bad; hann var ellefu vetra ok sterkr at jöfnum aldri, and strong for his age; jafn e-m, equal to one; jafnt er sem þér sýnist, af er fótrinn, it is just as it appears to thee, the leg is off; komast til jafns við e-n, hafa e-t til jafns við e-n, to equal one, be one’s match in a thing; at jöfnu, equally, in equal shares.

* * *

adj., also spelt jamn, f. jöfn, neut. jafnt, often spelt as well as proncd. jamt; compar. jafnari, superl. jafnastr: [Ulf. ibns, Luke vi. 17; A. S. efen; Engl. and Dutch even; old Fr. ivin; O. H. G. eban; mod. Germ. eben; Dan. jevn; Swed. jemn; akin to Lat. aequus by interchange of palatal and labial, see Grimm’s Dict. s. v. eben]:—even, equal, but, like Lat. aequus, mostly in a metaph. sense, for sléttr (q. v.) answers to Lat. planus; often followed by a dat., jafn e-u, equal to a thing, in comparison:

I. equal, equal to; jöfn eyri (dat.) gulls, K. Þ. K. 72; jafn Guði, equal to God; jafn mér, passim.

2. equal, the same; enda er jöfn helgi hans meðan hann ferr svá með sér, Grág. i. 93; ella er jöfn sök við hann fram á leið, 322; at ek verða jafn drengr í hvert sinn, Sd. 188; þínar verða flestar jafnastar, thy acts are mostly the same, i. e. all bad, Fms. viii. 409.

3. fixed, unchanged; með jafnri leigu, jöfnum kaupum, jöfnum skildaga, Rétt. 2. 7, Stat. 264, Fb. ii. 137; hann var ellefu vetra eðr tíu, ok sterkr at jöfnum aldri, and strong for his age, Eg. 188, 592; eiga þeir jöfnum höndum (see hönd) allt þat er þeir taka, Grág. ii. 66.

4. even, even-tempered; jafn ok úmíslyndr, Mar.: of numbers, jöfn tala, even in tale, equal, opp. to odda-tala, Alg. 356.

II. neut. jafnt or jamt, almost adverbially, equally, just; jafnt utan sem innan, Grág. i. 392: as, just as, ok hafa eitt atferli báðar jamt, both together, both alike, Fms. xi. 137; jafnt er sem þér sýnisk (‘tis as it appears, indeed), af er fótrinn, Nj. 97; jafnt þrælar sem frjálsir menn, Fms. i. 113: jamt sem, just as, equally as; jafnt sem í fjórðungs-dómi, jamt skal eiga féránsdóm eptir fjörbaugs-mann sem eptir skógar-mann, Grág. i. 87; skal hann láta virða fé þat jamt sem úmaga-eyri, 189; menn skulu svá sakir hluta, jamt sem á alþingi, 122; jafnt hefir komit er þú spáðir, it has happened just as thou didst foretel, Niðrst. 8: ellipt., ok skal hann þá jamt (sem þeir) allri bót upp halda, Grág. ii. 182.

2. temp. at the same time, just; ek skíri þik, ok nefna barn, í nafni Föður, ok drepa barninu í vatn um sinn jafnt fram fyrir sik, and dip the bairn each time info the water, K. Þ. K. 10: just, precisely, in the very moment, þat var jamt Jóla-aptan sjálfan er þeir börðusk, Fms. xi. 15; jamt í því hann stakaði. 133.

3. adverb., at jöfnu, equally, in equal shares, Fms. xi. 131.

4. til jafns, vóru þeir engir at né eina íþrótt hefði til jafns við hann, Nj. 46; halda til jafns við e-n, Ld. 40; komask til jafns við e-n, Fb. i. 261.

B. COMPDS:

I. such a, so … a; Karvel jafn-frægum dreng, so fine a fellow as K., Karl. 103; er þat skömm jafn-mörgum mönnum, ‘tis a shame for so many men, Gísl. 51: with the particle sem, jafn-ungr sem hann var, young as he was, i. e. so young as he was for his age, Vápn. 5; vel hafi þér mínu máli komit, jafn-úvænt sem var, Þiðr. 136; kvað þat ekki hæfa á jafn-mikilli hátið sem ( in such a feast as) í hönd ferr, Fb. i. 376; at eigi skyldi Hugon keisari yfir þá stíga jafn-reiðr sem hann varð þeim, Karl. 478; undraðisk hón hversu fríðr ok fagr hann var jafn-gamall maðr ( for his age), Stj. 225; mikill maðr ertú þó Þórir, jafn-gamall, Ó. H. 176; Þórir Oddsson var sterkastr jafn-gamall, Gullþ. 4.

II. mod. phrases such as, það er jafngott fyrir hann, it serves him right; hann er jafngóðr fyrir því, it won’t hurt him; or honum er það jafn-gott, it will do him good, serve him right; vera jafn-nær, to be equally near, i. e. none the better; hann fór jafnnær, it was all of no use.

III. in countless COMPDS (esp. adjectives) with almost any participle or adverb, rarely with verbs and nouns, and denoting equal, as, the same, as seen from the context often followed by a dat., e. g. jafn-gamall e-m, of the same age as another person:—of these compds only some can be noticed: jafn-aldri, a, m. one of the same age, Fms. i. 13, vii. 199, Bs. i. 179, Eg. 25, 84. jafn-auðigr, adj. equally wealthy, Band. 2: equally happy, hann setr hund sinn jafnaudigan okkr undir borði, Bjarn. 27. jafn-auðsær, adj. as perspicuous, Eluc. 41. jafn-auðveldr, adj. as easy, Ld. 78. jafn-ágætr, adj. as good, as noble, Nj. 129. jafn-ákafr, adj. as impetuous, Fms. xi. 137. jafn-beinn, adj. as straight, Sturl. i. 196. jafn-berr, adj. equally bare, Fas. i. 67. jafn-bitinn, part. evenly bitten or grazed, of a field, Gþl. 407. jafn-bitr, jafn-beittr, adj. as sharp, keen. jafn-bjartr, adj. as bright, Nj. 208: neut., Sks. 69. jafn-bjóða, bauð; j. e-m, to be a match for one, Finnb. 260: to be equal to, contest on equal terms with one, Fms. ii. 27, vii. 22; gripr betri en þeim peningum jafnbjóði, 655 xxx. 10. jafn-blíðr, adj. equally mild, Fær. 154. jafn-borinn, part. of equal birth, Ld. 332, Fms. x. 79 (v. l.), Gþl. 133; j. til e-s, having equal birthright to, Fms. vii. 8, x. 407. jafn-brattr, adj. as steep. jafn-brátt, n. adj. as soon, at the same moment, Hom. 114. jafn-breiðr, adj. equally broad, Edda 28, Gþl. 355. jafn-búinn, part. equally ‘boun’ or armed, Fms. ii. 165: ready, prepared, Stj. jafn-deildr, part. equally shared, Hom. 148. jafn-digr, adj. as stout, Sturl. iii. 63. jafn-djúpr, adj. as deep. jafn-djúpvitr, adj. as deep-scheming, Orkn. 214, Hkr. iii. 95. jafn-drengilegr, adj. as gallant, Ísl. ii. 446. jafn-drjúgdeildr, part. going as far, of stores, Sturl. i. 166. jafn-drjúgr, adj. keeping as long, Sturl. i. 216, Rb. 18. jafn-dýrligr, adj. equally splendid, Bs. i. 454. jafn-dýrr, adj. as costly, glorious, of the same price, K. Þ. K. 28, Nj. 56, Grett. 104 A, N. G. L. i. 150, 348. jafn-dægri, n. (mod. jafndægr), the equinox, both dægr (q. v.) being equally long, Edda 103, Rb. 454, 456, 472, and passim: equal length, of day and night, Fb. i. 539; see eykt. jafn-dæmi, n. equal judgment, justice, Fms. vi. 431, Pr. 413. jafn-dæmr, adj. just, giving equal judgment, Rb. 364. jafn-einfaldr, adj. as simple, guileless, Hom. 50. jafn-fagr, adj. as fair, Nj. 112. jafn-fallegr, adj. as handsome. jafn-fastr, adj. equally firm, Grág. i. 7, K. Þ. K. 166: as adv., Fms. x. 270, Finnb. 338. jafn-fáir, adj. as few. jafn-feigr, adj. as fey. jafn-feitr, adj. as fat. jafn-fimlega, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as alert, Fms. ii. 273. jafn-fimr, adj. as alert, Fær. 272, Hkr. i. 291, v. l. jafn-fjær, adv. as far. jafn-fjölmennr, adj. with as many men, Nj. 222. jafn-flatt, n. adj.; fara j., to fare so ill, Fms. vi. 379; see flatr. jafn-fljótr, adj. as swift. jafn-fram, adv. equally forward, side by side: with dat., jafnfram skipi Rúts, Nj. 8: locally, of places, over against, (= gegnt and gagn-vart, q. v.); with dat., er hann kom jafnfram Borgund, Hkr. ii. 309; j. Eiðsvelli, Vermá, Fms. ix. 408; j. gagntaki konungs sonar, j. boðanum, vii. 170, ix. 387 (v. l.): as adv., standa jafnfram, to stand evenly, in a straight line; standa allir j. fyrir konungs borðinu, i. 16, Eg. 581, Nj. 140, Rb. 466, Sturl. iii. 244: temp. at the same moment, of two things happening together, Fms. vi. 24; þeir riðu til þings jafnfram Skeggja, Þórð. 18 new Ed.; hann ferr ávalt jafnfram í frásogn æfi Guðs-sonar, follows parallel in the story, 625. 83: in equal share, taka arf j., Gþl. 248; at the same time, also, hugsa þat j., at the same time consider, Stj. 156; jafnfram sem, jafnfram ok, as soon as, Karl. 158, Pr. 413. jafn-framarla, -framar, -liga, adv. as forward, as far, just as well, Ld. 254, Bs. i. 778. jafn-frammi, adv. = jafnframt, Sks. 364, Sturl. i. 32: temp., Fms. iii. 218. jafn-framt, adv. = jafnfram, Háv. 42: temp., Sturl. i. 1: along with, with dat., Pass. viii. 9: equally, in the same degree, Ld. 62. jafn-fríðr, adj. as fair, Fms. i. 8: as valuable, K. Þ. K. 172. jafn-frjáls, adj. equally free, Fas. iii. 8. jafn-frjálsliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as freely, as liberally, Hkr. i. 78. jafn-fróðr, adj. as wise, as knowing, Sks. 544. jafn-frægr, adj. as famous, Fas. i. 277. jafn-frækn, adj. equally gallant, Edda. jafn-fullr, adj. as full, Grág. i. 20, 68, Gþl. 477. jafn-fúinn, adj. equally rotten, jafn-fúss, adj. equally willing, Sturl. i. 190. jafn-færr, adj. as able, Nj. 97. jafn-fætis, adv. on equal footing; standa j. e-m, Sturl. ii. 134, Hkr. ii. 153. jafn-gamall, adj. of the same age, Ld. 108, Fms. i. 60, xi. 96. jafn-geði, n. evenness of temper, Sks. 435. jafn-gefinn, part. equally given to, Fas. i. 268. jafn-gegnt, adv. just opposite to, Sks. 63, Fms. ix. 463; see gegnt. jafn-girnd, f. and jafn-girni, f. fairness, equity, Sks. 273, 639, Hom. 17. jafn-gjarn, adj. as eager, Hom. 19: as equitable, Sks. 355, Hom. 135, Karl. 495. jafn-gjarna (- gjarnliga), adv. as willingly, as readily, Fms. iii. 45 (v. l.), ix. 508, Stj. jafn-glaðr, adj. as glad, as cheerful, Eb. 88: neut., mér er ekki jafnglatt sem áðr, Fas. i. 106. jafn-glöggt, n. adj. as clearly, Bs. i. 352. jafn-góðr, adj. equally good, as good, Nj. 18, Eg. 54, Gþl. 233, N. G. L. i. 347, Dipl. v. 16: unhurt, none the worse, see (II) above. jafn-góðviljaðr, adj. with equally good will, Stj. 629. jafn-grannr, adj. equally thin. jafn-grimmliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as fiercely, Th. jafn-grimmr, adj. as fierce, Sks. 79. jafn-grunnr, adj. as shallow. jafn-gæfr, adj. as meek, Rb. 397. jafn-göfigr, adj. as good, as famous, Sturl. iii. 11, Bs. i. 133. jafn-görla, adv. as clearly, Grág. i. 299, Fms. ii. 171, Fas. i. 271. jafn-hafðr, part. equally used, N. G. L. i. 249. jafn-hagliga, adv. as skilfully, Krók. 53. jafn-hagr, adj. as skilful in handiwork, Nj. 147. jafn-harðr, adj. as hard, as severe, Nj. 79: neut. jafn-hart, as fast, Fas. iii. 488: jafn-harðan, adv. instantly. jafn-harðsnúinn, part. as hard-twisted, as tight, Nj. 79. jafn-hár, adj. as high, as tall, as loud, Rb. 112, 474, Fas. ii. 79: of metre, see hár (I. 3), Fms. vi. 386, Skálda 182, 190: neut., Stj. 79. jafnhátta-góðr, adj. as well-mannered, Ld. 174. jafn-heilagr, adj. as holy, as inviolable, Sks. 674, Grág. i. 90. jafn-heill, adj. as hale, as whole, Eg. 425, v. l. jafn-heimoll, adj. equally open to use, Eg. 47, Ld. 70, Gþl. 214, 353: equally bound, 57. jafn-heimskr, adj. equally stupid, Fms. ii. 156, Sd. 178. jafn-heitr, adj. as hot, Sks. 540. jafn-hentr, adj. as well fitted, Sturl. i. 196. jafn-hlær, adj. equally snug, Rb. 440. jafn-hollr, adj. equally sincere, Orkn. 166. jafn-hógværliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as meekly, Krók. 36. jafn-hógværr, adj. as gentle. jafn-hraustr, adj. as valiant, Fms. ii. 356, Krók. 51. jafn-hryggr, adj. as distressed, Hkr. iii. 269. jafn-hugaðr, adj. even-tempered, Sks. 24: of one mind, 300: as daring. jafn-hvass, adj. as sharp, Ld. 306: blowing as hard. jafn-hvatr, adj. as bold, as quick, Sturl. i. 112, v. l. jafn-hvítr, adj. equally white. jafn-hæðiligr, adj. (-liga, adv.), as ridiculous, Fas. iii. 91. jafn-hægr, adj. equally easy, ready, meek, Fms. ii. 106, Fær. 69, Grág. i. 264, ii. 257. jafn-hættr, adj. as dangerous, Sks. 540. jafn-höfigr, adj. as heavy, Rb. 102, Edda 38. jafn-ílla, adv. as badly, Fms. viii. 140 (v. l.), Ísl. ii. 181. jafn-ílliligr, adj. (-liga, adv.) as ill-looking, Fas. ii. 207. jafn-íllr, adj. equally bad, Grág. ii. 145, Fas. ii. 513. jafn-kaldr, adj. as cold, Sks. 215. jafn-keypi, n. an equal bargain, Fs. 25. jafn-kominn, part. on even terms, Sks. 455: neut. an even match, jafnkomit er á með ykkr, ye are well-matched, Nj. 59; hann kvað jafnkomit með þeim fyrir aldrs sakir, Fms. iii. 76; jafnkomnir til erfðar, with equal title to, Grág. i. 304; jafnkomnir til fyrir ættar sakir, Fms. i. 220; jafnkomnir at frændsemi, Ísl. ii. 315. jafn-kosta, adj. well-matched, good enough, of wedlock, Stj. 204. jafn-kostgæfinn, adj. equally painstaking, Bs. i. 681. jafn-krappr, adj. as straight, narrow; í jafnkrappan stað, in such a strait, Ld. 168. jafn-kringr, adj. equally dexterous, Sks. 381. jafn-kristinn, adj. a fellow Christian, Jb. 92, Barl. 44. jafn-kunnigr, adj. as well known, Grett. 162 A: knowing as well. jafn-kunnr, adj. as well known, Hom. 90. jafn-kurteis, adj. as courteous, Sturl. i. 165. jafn-kyrr, adj. as quiet. jafn-kýta, t, with dat. = jafnyrða. jafn-kænn, adj. as ‘cunning,’ as well versed, Stj. 561. jafn-kærr, adj. as dear, as beloved, Fms. i. 215, xi. 319. jafn-langr, adj. as long, equally long, Fms. xi. 376, Gþl. 350, 355, Ísl. ii. 219, Grág. i. 406, Edda 138 ( of the same length): neut., en ef þær segja jafnlangt, if they say both the same, Grág. i. 7. jafn-lágr, adj. equally low. jafn-leiðr, adj. equally loathed, Fms. viii. 240. jafn-leiki, n. = jafnleikit. jafn-leikit, n. part. an equal game, Fms. xi. 131. jafn-lendi, n. a level, even piece of ground, Eg. 584. jafn-lengd, f. ‘even-length,’ the return to the same time in the next day, week, month, year, etc.: of a day, til jafnlengdar annars dags, Grág. ii. 16, Stj. 49; þann sama dag tók Gormr konungr sótt, ok andaðisk annan dag at jafnlengdinni, Fms. i. 119, Fas. ii. 30, 37: of a year, anniversary, skal eigi brullaup vera fyrr en at jafnlengd, Grág. i. 311; tíu aurar sé leigðir eyri til jafnlengdar (a year’s rent), 390; at jafnlengd it síðasta, 487; eigi síðarr en fyrir jafnlengd, Fms. xi. 397; halda hátíð at jafnlengdum, Greg. 13, Hom. 98; jafnlengdar-dagr, 129, Fms. v. 214, Dipl. v. 8; jafnlengdar hátíð, an anniversary, Greg. 13. jafn-lengi, adv. as long, Grág. i. 423, Fms. iii. 9, MS. 732. 7. jafn-léttmæltr, adj. equally easy, just as pleasant in one’s speech, Fms. vii. 227. jafn-léttr, adj. as light, as easy, Sturl. iii. 90: neut. (adverb.), Kjartani var ekki annat jafn-létthjalat, K. liked not to speak of anything so much, Ld. 214. jafn-léttvígr, adj. as ready in wielding arms, Sturl. iii. 90. jafn-liða, adj. with an equal number of men, Eb. 144. jafn-liga, adv. equally, fairly; sýnisk mér eigi j. á komit, Bs. i. 531, Vm. 169; skipta j., Fb. ii. 300: perpetually, all along, always, usually, Fms. i. 191, x. 88, 89, Dipl. v. 8, Rb. 348, 472, Stj. 77. jafn-ligr, adj. equal, fair, Hkr. ii. 149, Háv. 57, Eg. 488; er þat miklu jafnligra, a more equal match, Fms. vii. 115. jafn-líkligr, adj. as likely, Sturl. iii. 7, Lv. 77. jafn-líkr, adj. as like, Lv. 58, Fas. ii. 478: equal, alike, j. sem hornspónar efni, Bs. i. 59. jafn-lítill, adj. as little, Fas. iii. 487. jafn-ljóss, adj. as bright, Bret. 62. jafn-ljótr, adj. as ugly, Fms. iv. 175. jafn-ljúfr, adj. as willing. jafn-lygn, adj. as ‘loun,’ as calm, of the wind. jafn-lyndi, n., fem. in Mar. 848; evenness of temper, Stj., Fagrsk. 132, Bs. i. 141, Mar. passim. jafn-lyndr, adj. even-tempered, Fms. vi. 287, viii. 447 (v. l.) jafn-lýðskyldr, adj. equally bound, as liegemen, Sks. 270. jafn-lærðr, adj. as learned. jafn-magr, adj. equally meagre. jafn-maki, a, m. an equal, a match, Sks. 22, 255. jafn-mannvænn, adj. equally promising, Þorf. Karl. 382. jafn-margr, adj. as many, Nj. 104, Grág. ii. 210, 403, Fms. i. 152, ii. 34. jafn-máttugr, adj. as mighty, Fms. ii. 157, Eluc. 6. jafn-máttuligr, adj. equally possible, 655 xxii. B. jafn-menni, n. an equal, a match, Ld. 132, Ísl. ii. 358, Fms. vi. 345, vii. 103. jafn-menntr, adj. of equal rank, Hrafn. 10. jafn-merkiligr, adj. equally dignified, Bs. i. 148. jafn-mikill, adj. as great, Grág. ii. 264, 403, Fms. i. 1, Gþl. 363: equally big, tall, Fms. x. 202, Nj. 11: neut. as much, Fms. vii. 240, Skálda 168. jafn-mildr, adj. as mild, as gracious, Rb. 366. jafn-minnigr, adj. having as good a memory, Bs. i. 681. jafn-mjúkliga, adv. as meekly, as gently, Lv. 50. jafn-mjúkr, adj. equally soft. jafn-mjök, adv. as much, as strongly, Grág. ii. 140, Skálda 168. jafn-myrkr, adj. equally dark, Skálda 209. jafn-mæli, n. fair play, equality, Fb. i. 407, Fms. vi. 206, Grág. i. 88, 200, Ld. 258, H. E. i. 247, Karl. 99. jafn-naumr, adj. as close. jafn-náinn, adj.; j. at frændsemi, equally near akin, Grág. i. 171, ii. 67, Eb. 124, Ísl. ii. 315, (jafnan, Ed.) jafn-nær, mod. jafn-nærri, adv. equally near: loc., er Ólafs mark j. báðum, Fms. vii. 64, 268, Sks. 63, 216: as near, at honum væri úvarligt at láta jafnmarga heiðna menn vera j. sér, Fms. ii. 34: equally near (by birth), i. 123: metaph., eigi hefir honum jafnnærri gengit újafnaðr þeirra sem mér, Sturl. iii. 238: also jafn-nær, adj. equally nigh, not a whit the better, see (II) above. jafn-nætti, n. the equinox, 673. 54, Stj. 15. jafn-oki, a, m. = jafnmaki, an equal, a match for one, Sks. 22: a play-fellow, Stj. 497, Þiðr. 213. jafn-opt, adv. as often, Nj. 211, Rb. 566, Grág. i. 186. jafn-ótt, adj., neut. as adv., at the same, time, immediately. Pass. 20. 2: one after another, taka e-ð jafnótt og það kemr. jafn-rakkr, adj. as strong, as straight, Ld. 168. jafn-ramr, adj. as mighty, as great a wizard, Vþm. 2. jafn-rangr; adj. as wrong. jafn-ráðinn, part. equally determined, Grett. 149. jafn-reiðr, adj. equally angry, Háv. 52. jafn-rétti, n. an equal right. jafnréttis-maðr, m. a man with equal right, N. G. L. i. 31. jafn-réttr, adj. as right, as lawful, Edda 93, Grág. i. 18: of equal authority, Hkr. iii. 79. jafn-réttvíss, adj. equally just, Sks. 670. jafn-rífligr, adj. (-liga, adv.), as large, Lv. 75. jafn-ríkr, adj. as rich, equally mighty. jafn-rjóðr, adj. as ruddy, Hkr. i. 102. jafn-rúmr, adj. equally large, Bjarn. jafn-ræði, n. an equal match, Fms. ii. 22, Glúm. 350, Nj. 49, Gþl. 215. jafn-röskr, adj. as brisk, as quick, Fms. iii. 225, vi. 96. jafn-saman, adv.; fyrir þessa hugsan alla jafnsaman, all at once, all together, Fms. i. 185, Ld. 326, Ó. H. 46, Stj. 86, 121, Barl. 191. jafn-sannr, adj. equally true, 671. 1, Edda 19, Stj. 471. jafn-sárr, adj. as sore, as smarting, Mar. jafn-seinn, adj. as slow. jafn-sekr, adj. just as guilty, Grág. ii. 64, 89. jafn-síðis, adv. along with. jafn-síðr, adj. as long, of a garment (síðr), Stj. 563. jafn-sjúkr, adj. as sick, Fms. v. 324. jafn-skammr, adj. as short, Al. 129. jafn-skarpliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as briskly, Nj. 199, v. l. jafn-skarpr, adj. as sharp, as keen. jafn-skipti, n. equal, fair dealing. jafn-skiptiliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), equally, mutually, Stj. 159. jafn-skiptr, part. equally shared. jafn-skjótr, adj. as swift, Fms. vii. 169, Rb. 454:—jafn-skjótt, neut. as adv. immediately, at once, Eg. 87, 291, 492, Fms. ii. 10; jafnskjótt sem, as soon as, Nj. 5, Barl. 176, Karl. 409, 441. jafn-skygn, adj. as clear-sighted, 655 xiii. A, Bjarn. 59. jafn-skyldliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as dutifully, Ver. 3. jafn-skyldr, adj. equally bound or obliged, Grág. ii. 362, 403, Gþl. 70, 477, Fms. vii. 274. jafn-sköruliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), equally bold, Nj. 199. jafn-slétta, u, f. even, level ground. jafn-sléttr, adj. equally level, Stj. 79: as easily, Fas. ii. 48. jafn-slægr, adj. as cunning, Fær. 99. jafn-snarpr, adj. (-snarpligr, adj., -liga, adv.), as sharp, Fms. vi. 156. jafn-snarr, adj. as alert. jafn-snart, adj., neut. as adv., as soon, instantly, Fas. iii. 434, Matth. xxvii. 48. jafn-snauðr, adj. as poor. jafn-snemma, adv. at the very same moment, of a coincidence, Eg. 425, Nj. 253, Fms. vi. 221; allir j., all at once, ix. 506, xi. 368 ( both together); vóru þessir atburðir margir jafnsnemma, en sumir litlu fyrr eðr síðar, Hkr. ii. 368. jafn-snjallr, adj. equal, Glúm., Bjarn. (in a verse). jafn-spakr, adj. equally wise, Hm. 53. jafn-sparr, adj. as saving, as close, Grág. i. 197, 222. jafn-sterkr, adj. as strong, Fms. i. 43. jafn-stirðr, adj. as stiff. jafn-stórlátr, adj. as proud, Ld. 116. jafn-stórliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as proudly, Ölk. 34. jafn-stórr, adj. as big, as great. jafn-stórættaðr, adj. of equally high birth, Fms. iv. 26. jafn-stríðr, adj. as hard, severe, Sks. 639. jafn-stuttr, adj. equally short, brief. jafn-syndligr, adj. as sinful, Sks. 674. jafn-sætr, adj. as sweet, Fb. i. 539. jafn-sætti, n. an agreement on equal terms, Nj. 21, Sturl. iii 253, Fb. i. 126. jafn-tamr, adj. equally alert. jafn-tefli, n. an equal, drawn game, Vígl. 32. jafn-tengdr, part. in equal degrees of affinity, Grág. ii. 183. jafn-tíðhjalat, n. part. as much talked about, Nj. 100. jafn-tíðrætt, n. adj. = jafntíðhjalat, Nj. 100. jafn-tíguliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), equally lordly, Fms. x. 109. jafn-títt, n. adj. as often, as frequent, Niðrst. 10. jafn-torogætr, adj. as rarely to be got, choice, Bs. i. 143. jafn-torsótligr, adj. as hard to get at, Fms. x. 358. jafn-trauðr, adj. as unwilling. jafn-traustr, adj. as much to be trusted, Fms. vi. 244. jafn-trúr, jafn-tryggr, adj. as faithful. jafn-undarligr, adj. (-liga, adv.), as strange, Sks. 80. jafn-ungr, adj. as young, Fms. iii. 60, iv. 383. jafn-úbeint, n. adj. as far from the mark, of a bad shot, Fms. viii. 140. jafn-úfærr, adj. as unpassable, Sturl. iii. 163. jafn-úhefnisamr, adj. as tame, Rb. 366. jafn-úráðinn, part. as irresolute, Grett. 153. jafn-úspakr, adj. as unruly, Sturl. ii. 63. jafn-útlagr, adj. having to lay out the same fine, N. G. L. i. 158. jafn-vandhæfr, adj. as dangerous to keep, treat, Grág. i. 89. jafn-vandliga, adv. as carefully, Grág. ii. 249. jafn-varliga, adv. (-ligr, adj.), as warily, Fms. vii. 127. jafn-varmr, adj. as warm, Sks. 217. jafn-varr, adj. as well aware, as much on one’s guard, Dropl. 28. jafn-vaskliga, adv. as gallantly, Fms. vii. 127, Ld. 272. jafn-vaskligr, adj. as gallant. jafn-vaskr, adj. as bold, Str. 3. jafn-vátr, adj. equally wet. jafn-veginn, part. of full weight, Stj. 216. jafn-vegit, n. a law phrase, used when an equal number has been slain on both sides, in which case there were no further proceedings, Glúm. 383, Fas. ii. 208. jafn-vel, adv. as well, equally well, Nj. 48, Eg. 111, Gþl. 354: likewise, hafa fyrirgört fé ok friði ok jafnvel óðals-jörðum sínum, 142; en þenna eið skulu jafnvel biskupar ábyrgjask við Guð …, jafnvel sem ( as well as) hinir úlærðu, 57; jafnvel af sænum sem af landinu, Al. 2; ok jamvel sendir jarl þeim mönnum orð, sem …, Fms. xi. 120: even, dögföll um nætr jafnvel at heiðskírum veðrum, Stj. 17; jafnvel eptir þat er þau misgörðu, 40; jafnvel sýniliga, j. oss önduðum, 9, Bs. i. 549, Barl. 170, 176, Gísl. 83; this last sense is very freq. in mod. usage. jafn-velviljaðr, part. as well wishing, Sks. 312. jafn-vesall, adj. as wretched, Krók. 54. jafn-virði, n. equal wirth, Bs. i. 9, Al. 48. jafn-vægi, n. equal weight, equilibrium, Hkr. ii. 250, Fas. i. 121; bóandi ok húsfreyja j. sitt, i. e. both of them equally, N. G. L. i. 6. jafn-vægja, ð, to weigh the same as another, Fms. iii. 120. jafn-vægr, adj. of equal weight, Sks. 644. jafn-vænn, adj. equally fine, handsome, promising, Fms. x. 429, Sturl. iii. 67. jafn-vætta, t, to weigh against, counterbalance, Stj. 13, Þorst. Síðu H. 14. jafn-yrða, ð, with dat. to altercate, bandy words, Sturl. iii. 213. jafn-þarfr, adj. as useful, Arnor. jafn-þéttr, adj. pressed as closely together. jafn-þjófgefinn, adj. as thievish. jafn-þolinmóðr, adj. as patient, Rb. 366. jafn-þolinn, adj. as enduring. jafn-þreyttr, part. as weary. jafn-þrifinn, adj. as cleanly. jafn-þröngr, adj. as tight. jafn-þungr, adj. as heavy, pressing, Fms. v. 264, Stj. 278. jafn-þurr, adj. equally dry. jafn-þykkr, adj. as thick, Hkr. iii. 159. jafn-þyrstr, part. as thirsty. jafn-æfr, adj. as impetuous. jafn-æstr, part. equally excited, Band. 34 new Ed. jafn-örr, adj. as eager, as liberal. jafn-öruggr, adj. as firm, steadfast.

i. e. œði, in COMPDS: æðifullr, æðiregn, æðisamliga, æðistormr, æðistraumr, æðiveðr, æðiverkr, æðivindr.

II. in mod. usage æði-, with adjectives = very; æði-sterkr, það er æði-heitt, very hot; æði-kaldr, bitterly cold; æði-mikið, very much.

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prep. w. dat.

I. Of place:

1) off, from;

G. hljóp af hesti sínum, G. jumped off his horse;

ganga af mótinu, to go away from the meeting;

Flosi kastaði af sér skikkjunni, threw off his cloak;

Gizzur gekk af útsuðri at gerðinu, from the south-west;

hann hafði leyst af sér skúa sína, he had taken off his shoes;

Steinarr vildi slíta hann af sér, throw him off;

tók Gísli þá af sér vápnin, took off his arms;

bréf af Magnúsi konungi, a letter from king Magnus;

land af landi, from one land to the other;

hverr af öðrum, one after another, in succession;

vil ek þú vinnir af þér skuldina, work off the debt;

muntu enga sætt af mér fá, no peace at my hand;

rísa af dauða, to rise from the dead;

vakna af draumi, to awaken from a dream;

lúka upp af hrossi, to open a gate from off a horse;

vindr stóð af landi, the wind blew from the land;

2) out of;

verða tekinn af heimi, to be taken out of the world;

gruflar hón af læknum, she scrambles out of the brook;

Otradalr var mjök af vegi, far out of the way.

Connected with út; föstudaginn fór út herrinn af borginni, marched out of the town.

II. Of time; past, beyond:

af ómagaaldri, able to support oneself, of age;

ek em nú af léttasta skeiði, no longer in the prime of life;

þá er sjau vikur eru af sumri, when seven weeks of summer are past;

var mikit af nótt, much of the night was past.

III. In various other relations:

1) þiggja lið af e-m, to receive help from one;

hafa umboð af e-m, to be another’s deputy;

vera góðs (ills) maklegr af e-m, to deserve good (bad) of one;

féll þar lið mart af Eyvindi, many of Eyvind’s men fell there;

þá eru þeir útlagir ok af goðorði sínu, have forfeited their goðorð;

þá skalt þú af allri fjárheimtunni, forfeit all the claim;

ek skal stefna þér af konunni, summon thee to give up;

2) off, of;

höggva fót, hönd, af e-m, to cut off one’s foot, hand;

vil ek, at þú takir slíkt sem þér líkar af varningi, whatever you like of the stores;

þar lá forkr einn ok brotit af endanum, with the point broken off;

absol., beit hann höndina af, bit the hand off;

fauk af höfuðit, the head flew off;

3) of, among;

hinn efniligasti maðr af ungum mönnum, the most promising of the young men;

4) with;

hláða, (ferma) skip af e-u, to load (freight) a ship with;

fylla heiminn af sínu kyni, to fill the world with his offspring;

5) of (= ór which is more frequent);

húsit var gert af timbr stokkum, was built of trunks of trees;

6) fig., eigi vita menn hvat af honum er orðit, what has become of him;

hvat hefir þú gert af Gunnari, what hast thou done with Gunnar?;

7) denoting parentage, descent, origin;

ok eru af þeim komnir Gilsbekkingar, are descended from them;

kominn af Trójumönnum, descended from the Trojans;

8) by, of (after passive);

ek em sendr hingat af Starkaði, sent hither by;

ástsæll af landsmónnum, beloved of;

9) on account of, by reason of, by;

úbygðr at frosti ok kulda, because of frost and cold;

ómáli af áverkum, speechless from wounds;

af ástæld hans, by his popularity;

af því, therefore;

af hví, wherefor why;

af því at, because;

10) by means of, by;

framfœra e-n af verkum sínum, by means of his own labour;

af sínu fé, by one’s own means;

absol., hann fekk af hina mestu sœmd, derived great honour from it;

11) with adjectives, in regard to;

mildr af fé, liberal of money;

góðr af griðum, merciful;

fastr af drykk, close (stingy) in regard to drink;

12) used absol. with a verb, off away;

hann bað hann þá róa af fjörðinn, to row the firth off;

ok er þeir höfðu af fjörðung, when they had covered one forth of the way;

sofa af nóttina, to sleep the night away.

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prep. often used elliptically by dropping the case, or even merely adverbially, [Ulf. af; A. S. and Engl. of, off; Hel. ab; Germ. ab; Gr. άπό; Lat. a, ab.] With dat. denoting a motion a loco; one of the three prepp. af, ór, frá, corresponding to those in loco—á, í, við, and ad locum—á, í, at. It in general corresponds to the prepp. in loco—á, or in locum— til, whilst ór answers more to í; but it also frequently corresponds to yfir, um or í. It ranges between ór and frá, generally denoting the idea from the surface of, while ór means from the inner part, and frá from the outer part or border. The motion from a hill, plain, open place is thus denoted by af; by ór that from an enclosed space, depth, cavity, thus af fjalli, but ór of a valley, dale; af Englandi, but ór Danmörk, as mörk implies the notion of a deep wood, forest. The wind blows af landi, but a ship sets sail frá landi; frá landi also means a distance from: af hendi, of a glove, ring; ór hendi, of whatever has been kept in the hand (correl. to á hendi and í hendi). On the other hand af is more general, whilst frá and ór are of a more special character; frá denoting a departure, ór an impulse or force; a member goes home af þingi, whereas ór may denote an inmate of a district, or convey the notion of secession or exclusion from, Eb. 105 new Ed.; the traveller goes af landi, the exile ór landi: taka e-t af e-m is to take a thing out of one’s hand, that of taka frá e-m to remove out of one’s sight, etc. In general af answers to Engl. of, off, ór to out of, and frá to from: the Lat. prepp. ab, de, and ex do not exactly correspond to the Icelandic, yet as a rule ór may answer to ex, af sometimes to ab, sometimes to de. Of, off, from among; with, by; on account of by means of, because of concerning, in respect of.