bíll
[ˈpitl̥]masculine
The Icelandic word for car is bíll.
The word bíll is the most common and general term used to refer to an automobile or a vehicle steered by a driver.
Meaning: automobile, a vehicle steered by a driver (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
bíll is a masculine noun. To specify a particular vehicle, you can use the definite form bíllinn to mean 'the car'. For the plural 'cars', use bíla. If you need to express possession or relation, such as 'of a car', use the genitive singular form bíls.
Did you know?
- The word jeppa is used for SUVs or 4×4 vehicles and is a localized version of the English word 'jeep'.
- While bíll is the standard term, linguistic purists in Iceland may prefer the more traditional word vélbifreið to avoid using a loanword.
- The word bíll ultimately traces back to the Greek 'autós' meaning 'self' and the Latin 'mōbilis' meaning 'mobile'.
Examples in context
- Hvar er bíllinn minn?Where is my car?This sentence is useful for asking about the location of bíll.Tatoeba #4010180 by Bergthor, translation #251080 by xtofu80
- Þetta er bíllinn minn.This is my car.This sentence is useful for identifying bíll.Tatoeba #4010178 by Bergthor, translation #56205 by CK
- Bíllinn minn er rauður.My car is red.This sentence is useful for describing the color of bíll.Tatoeba #4010182 by Bergthor, translation #2610583 by MethodGT
- Ég er að kaupa nýjan bíl.I am buying a new car.
- 19 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Ólafur and Guðrún are discussing a new vehicle in a driveway.
- ÓlafurEr þetta nýr bíll?Is this a new car?
- GuðrúnJá, ég keypti nýjan bíl í gær.Yes, I bought a new car yesterday.
- ÓlafurHann er mjög flottur bíll.It is a very cool car.
- GuðrúnTakk fyrir, ég er mjög ánægð með hann.Thank you, I am very happy with it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “car” translations and entries bíll, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries bíll, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
