skemmta

Icelandic

Etymology

From either Proto-Germanic *skammatjaną or Proto-Germanic *skammitōną, both from *skammaz (short, blunt); the sense development would be "to shorten (the hours)" > "to make time fly (when having fun)" > "to entertain, amuse"". Cognate with Faroese skemta, Norwegian Nynorsk skjemta, Swedish skämta, and Danish skæmte.[1]

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈscɛm̥ta/
    Rhymes: -ɛm̥ta

Verb

skemmta (weak verb, third-person singular past indicative skemmti, supine skemmt)

  1. to entertain, amuse [with dative]
    Skemmtu þér vel!
    Have a good time.

Conjugation

skemmta – active voice (germynd)
infinitive nafnháttur skemmta
supine sagnbót skemmt
present participle
skemmtandi
indicative
subjunctive
present
past
present
past
singular ég skemmti skemmti skemmti skemmti
þú skemmtir skemmtir skemmtir skemmtir
hann, hún, það skemmtir skemmti skemmti skemmti
plural við skemmtum skemmtum skemmtum skemmtum
þið skemmtið skemmtuð skemmtið skemmtuð
þeir, þær, þau skemmta skemmtu skemmti skemmtu
imperative boðháttur
singular þú skemmt (þú), skemmtu
plural þið skemmtið (þið), skemmtiði1
1 Spoken form, usually not written; in writing, the unappended plural form (optionally followed by the full pronoun) is preferred.

Derived terms

References

  1. ^ Ásgeir Blöndal Magnússon (1989) “skemmta”, in Íslensk orðsifjabók, Reykjavík: Árni Magnússon Institute for Icelandic Studies, →ISBN (Available at Málið.is under the “Eldri orðabækur” tab.)