Ég hlusta á hljóðbók í strætó í stað þess að horfa á símann.

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Breakdown of Ég hlusta á hljóðbók í strætó í stað þess að horfa á símann.

• strætó: the bus
• hlusta: to listen
• á: to

Questions & Answers about Ég hlusta á hljóðbók í strætó í stað þess að horfa á símann.

Why do we say hlusta á hljóðbók and not just hlusta hljóðbók?

In Icelandic, the verb hlusta (to listen) almost always takes the preposition á with what you listen to: hlusta á e-ð.
So the standard pattern is:

• hlusta á hljóðbók – listen to an audiobook
• hlusta á tónlist – listen to music
• hlusta á kennarann – listen to the teacher

Leaving out á (hlusta hljóðbók) is ungrammatical in normal Icelandic.

What case is hljóðbók in, and why?

Hljóðbók is in the accusative singular.
The verb–preposition combination hlusta á governs the accusative case for its object, so whatever you listen to will be in the accusative:

• hlusta á hljóðbók (accusative)
• hlusta á podcast (accusative)

If you made it definite, it would be hlusta á hljóðbókina (also accusative, with the definite ending).

Why is it í strætó and not á strætó?

Í means in, inside and is used when you are inside a vehicle or enclosed space. Á is more like on, on top of or onto.
Since you are physically inside the bus, Icelandic uses í strætó (), not ().This is the same pattern as: