Word
Hann svarar að viðgerðin byrjar á morgun klukkan níu.
Meaning
He answers that the repair starts tomorrow at nine o’clock.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Hann svarar að viðgerðin byrjar á morgun klukkan níu.
hann
he
á morgun
tomorrow
byrja
to start
svara
to answer
Questions & Answers about Hann svarar að viðgerðin byrjar á morgun klukkan níu.
What does Hann mean grammatically, and why is it capitalized here?
Hann is the 3rd-person singular masculine pronoun (he). It’s capitalized only because it’s the first word of the sentence; otherwise it’s written hann.
What verb form is svarar, and how do I find its dictionary form?
svarar is the present tense, 3rd person singular form of the verb svara (to answer / reply).
So: að svara = to answer, hann svarar = he answers / he replies.
Why does Icelandic use svarar að ... here? Could I also use segir að ...?
Both are possible, but they’re not identical in feel:
- Hann svarar að ... = He replies/answers that ... (often in response to a question or statement)
- Hann segir að ... = He says that ... (more neutral reporting)
So svarar highlights that he is giving an answer/reply.
What is the function of að in this sentence?