ESk Geisl 51VII/6 — meguð ‘be able to’
Tôkn gerir bjǫrt, þaus birta
brandél á Girklandi,
— mál finnsk of þat mǫnnum —
margþarfr Haralds arfi.
Fregnk, at allt (né ógnar
innendr, meguð finna)
dýrð Óláfs ríðr dála
dagræfrs (konung hæfra).
Haralds margþarfr arfi gerir bjǫrt tôkn, þaus brandél birta á Girklandi; mál finnsk mǫnnum of þat. Fregnk, at Óláfs dýrð ríðr allt dála dagræfrs, né meguð, innendr ógnar, finna hæfra konung.
Haraldr’s very useful heir [= Óláfr] makes clear signs, which sword-showers [BATTLES] manifest in Greece; talk arises among men about that. I hear that Óláfr’s fame rides all across the day-roof [SKY/HEAVEN]; you, doers of battle, will not be able to find a more worthy king.
notes
[6] né meguð ‘you will not be able’: The form is 2nd pers. pl., a direct address to the audience. Both Skj B and Skald emend to megu, making the verb 3rd pers. pl., but this is not necessary. The topic of outdoing is already familiar from sts 11, 13, 14, and 21.
grammar
Verbs: Preterite-present verbs
The present tense of these verbs is like the past tense of strong verbs, and their past tense is weak.
| eiga | mega | kunna | skulu | munu | muna | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| indic. pres. | sing. pl. | 1st 2nd 3rd 1st 2nd 3rd | á átt á eigum eiguð eigu | má mátt má megum meguð megu | kann kannt kann kunnum kunnuð kunnu | skal skalt skal skulum skuluð skulu | mun munt mun munum munuð munu | man mant man munum munið muna |
| indic. past stem subj. pres. stem subj. past stem | átt- eig- ætt- | mátt- meg- mætt- | kunn- kunn- kynn- | skyld- skyl- skyld- | mund- myn- mynd- | mund- mun- mynd- | ||