Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Ég drekk vatn.

Icelandic doesn’t use indefinite articles the same way English does. In English, you might say “I drink water” or “I drink the water.” In Icelandic, there is no stand-alone word for a or an, so vatn simply stands on its own without an article.

How do I conjugate the verb drekka in the present tense?

The infinitive form is drekka. For the simple present tense:
• Ég drekk (I drink)
• Þú drekkur (You drink)
• Hann/Hún/Það drekkur (He/She/It drinks)
• Við drekkum (We drink)
• Þið drekkið (You plural drink)
• Þeir/Þær/Þau drekka (They drink)

Why is it Ég drekk vatn instead of Ég er að drekka vatn if I’m doing it right now?

Icelandic often uses the simple present tense for ongoing actions. While you can say Ég er að drekka vatn, meaning “I am (in the process of) drinking water,” the shorter version is completely acceptable for indicating a present, habitual, or near-future action.

Is Ég always capitalized like I in English?

Ég is always capitalized at the beginning of a sentence, naturally, but otherwise, it doesn’t have the same rule as I in English. In the middle of a sentence, you will see ég in lowercase.

How is Ég pronounced?

It’s pronounced somewhat like the English “yey” or “yay.” The initial sound is close to the palatal approximant /j/, followed by an eh sound. So together, it’s roughly /jeɪ/ in phonetic terms.