Ég leita að svari.

I am looking for an answer.

Breakdown of Ég leita að svari.

• ég: I
• leita að: to look for
• svar: the answer

Questions & Answers about Ég leita að svari.

What does each word in Ég leita að svari mean literally?

Ég = I
leita = search/look
að = for (preposition)
svari = answer (dative singular of svar)

Why is að used here and what role does it play?

Here að is a preposition meaning for, not the infinitive marker. The verb leita (‘to search/look’) requires að when introducing the thing you’re looking for. After this að, the noun must be in the dative case.

Why is svar in the dative case (svari) instead of the nominative?

Because the preposition að (in the sense ‘search for’) governs the dative case. So svar becomes svari when it follows að.

What is the gender and declension pattern of svar?

Svar is a neuter noun. Its indefinite singular forms are:
– Nominative/Accusative: svar
– Dative: svari
– Genitive: svars

How would I say “I’m looking for the answer” (i.e. a specific answer) instead of “an answer”?

Use the definite dative form svarinu:
Ég leita að svarinu.
This means “I’m looking for the (specific) answer.”

What’s the difference between Ég leita að svari and Ég er að leita að svari?

Ég er að leita að svari uses the progressive construction (er að + infinitive) to emphasize an ongoing action (“I am in the process of looking for an answer”).
Ég leita að svari is the simple present, which in Icelandic can also express a current or habitual action.

How do you pronounce Ég correctly?

In the Reykjavík dialect it’s [jɛɣ], roughly like “yehgh” with a soft, voiced g (a fricative). Some other dialects may say [jaɪ] or [jɑi].

Can I drop the subject pronoun Ég and just say Leita að svari?

In main clauses, Icelandic normally keeps an explicit subject to satisfy its verb-second (V2) word order. Dropping Ég (“Leita að svari”) can sound poetic, poetic or abrupt, though you might see it in headlines or notes.

How do I make the sentence negative?

Place ekki after the verb:
Ég leita ekki að svari.
This means “I am not looking for an answer.”