Kennarinn biður um skýra útskýringu.

the teacher

Breakdown of Kennarinn biður um skýra útskýringu.

• skýr: clear
• biðja um: to ask for
• útskýringin: the explanation

Questions & Answers about Kennarinn biður um skýra útskýringu.

Why does Kennarinn have the ending -inn, and what does it mean?

In Icelandic the definite article is not a separate word but a suffix attached to the noun. Kennarinn breaks down into kennari (English teacher) + the definite suffix -inn, so kennarinn means the teacher, whereas kennari alone means a teacher or just teacher.

What does biður mean, and why is it in this particular form?

Biður is the third-person singular present tense of the verb biðja (English to ask or to request). Since the subject (kennari) is third person singular, we use biður to express he/she asks or the teacher asks.

Why is there an um after biður?

In Icelandic, when biðja carries the meaning to ask for or to request, it must be followed by the preposition um, which governs the accusative case. So biður um literally means asks for.

Why is skýr a útskýringu in the accusative case?

The preposition always takes an accusative object. Therefore both the adjective (English ) and the noun (English ) must be in the accusative. That yields (feminine singular accusative of ) + (feminine singular accusative of ).