Level A1
Click on words to see their translations.
Hérna is the most common pause-word. It literally means “here”, but in this context it just means “uhh, ehh, er, uhm”.
- I don't, uhm, exactly know when this will be done.Ég veit ekki alveg, hérna, hvenær þetta verður búið.
- And, uhm, she just said no.Og hún, hérna, sagði bara nei.
- Hey so, uhm, I'm, uhh, throwing a party on, uhh, Sunday.Heyrðu, ég er, hérna, að halda, hérna, partí, hérna, á sunnudaginn.
- Note that this example is not an exaggeration, many people do put this many pauses in their sentences when they are trying to find the words. Icelanders do not notice hérna any more than English speakers notice uhhs.
Hérna can also be used to start new timid sentences, “uhh so...”:
- Uhh so, is this Ivar your cousin?Hérna, er þessi Ívar frændi þinn?
You should always try to use hérna instead of “uhh” when you forget a word in Icelandic. Remember that it is pronounced [hyedna] and not [hyerdna].