Fullyrða

Fullyrða is an Icelandic verb meaning to declare, assert, or profess. It is used when the speaker intends to express a belief or claim that they consider true. In practice, fullyrða can take a content clause introduced by að or a direct quotation to present the asserted proposition.

Etymology and related forms

The word is linked to the idea of making an assertion and is historically connected with related forms such as the noun fullyrðing, meaning an assertion, and the adjective fullyrðandi, meaning assertive. The infinitive is fullyrða, and standard Icelandic verb patterns apply to its conjugation. The exact inflection varies with person and number, as with most Icelandic verbs.

Usage and nuance

Fullyrða often appears in formal or argumentative contexts, including journalism, legal language, and academic writing, where the speaker wants to emphasize the certainty of a claim. The verb can convey different degrees of certainty depending on context, tone, and accompanying hedges or qualifiers. It is common to encounter phrases like “Ég fullyrði að …” (I assert that …) followed by a fact, interpretation, or quoted statement.

Examples

- Ég fullyrði að þessi tillaga er rétt. (I assert that this proposal is correct.)

- Hann fullyrði að hann hafi séð það með eigin augum. (He asserted that he saw it with his own eyes.)

See also

Fullyrðing (an assertion) and fullyrðandi (assertive) are closely related terms often used alongside fullyrða in discussions of argument and discourse.