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Kennarinn mun láta okkur vita þegar prófið byrjar.

Kennarinn mun láta okkur vita þegar prófið byrjar.
The teacher will let us know when the exam starts.
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Questions & Answers about Kennarinn mun láta okkur vita þegar prófið byrjar.

Why does Kennarinn end in -inn?

-inn is the suffixed definite article in Icelandic masculine nominative singular.

  • kennari = a teacher (indefinite)
  • kennarinn = the teacher (definite)
    So Kennarinn literally means the teacher.
How is the future expressed with mun in Kennarinn mun ...?

mun is a common way to express future or expectation, similar to will in English. The pattern is:

  • mun + (infinitive)
    Here: mun láta = will let / will have (someone) do / will cause

Depending on context, mun can sound like a neutral future (will) or a slightly predictive is likely to.

Why isn’t there an að before láta (like “to let”)?

After many auxiliary/modal-type verbs (including mun), Icelandic often uses a bare infinitive (no að):

  • Hann mun koma. = He will come.
    Not: Hann mun að koma.

So mun láta is normal without að.

What does láta okkur vita mean grammatically?

It’s an idiomatic Icelandic structure meaning to let us know. Literally it’s like to cause/allow us to know:

  • láta = let / make / have (someone do something)
  • okkur = us
  • vita (infinitive) = to know

So láta okkur vita functions as one unit: let us know.

Why is vita in the infinitive and not something like veit?

Because vita is the verb that depends on láta. With láta, Icelandic uses a bare infinitive for the “action” being caused/allowed:

  • Hún lét mig fara. = She let me go.
  • Kennarinn mun láta okkur vita ... = The teacher will let us know ...

If you used veit, that would be a finite verb (knows) and would require a different sentence structure.

What case is okkur, and why?

okkur is the 1st person plural object form (us). In this particular form it looks the same for both accusative and dative, but with láta the “person being made/allowed” is typically in the accusative:

  • láta mig / þig / hann / hana / okkur / ykkur / þá ...

So you can treat okkur here as the object us required by láta.

Why is it þegar prófið byrjar and not a different word order?

þegar introduces a time clause (when ...). In Icelandic, subordinate clauses usually keep the verb after the subject in a neutral order:

  • þegar prófið byrjar = when the exam begins (subject prófið
    • verb byrjar)

If the time clause came first, the main clause would show the typical V2 effect (verb second):

  • Þegar prófið byrjar, mun kennarinn láta okkur vita.
Why is prófið definite (the exam)?

prófið = próf (exam/test) + -ið (neuter definite article, nominative/accusative singular).
It implies a specific known exam (e.g., the exam we’re talking about). If it were indefinite, you’d see:

  • þegar próf byrjar (less natural in many contexts) or more likely a rephrasing.
How do you conjugate byrjar and what is the infinitive?

The infinitive is byrja (to begin/start).
byrjar is present tense, 3rd person singular:

  • ég byrja
  • þú byrjar
  • hann/hún/það byrjar
  • við byrjum
  • þið byrjið
  • þeir/þær/þau byrja

So prófið byrjar = the exam begins/starts.

Any pronunciation tips for tricky parts in this sentence?

A few common ones for English speakers:

  • ll in mun láta: Icelandic ll is often a special sound (not an English “l”), roughly like tl in many accents (varies by speaker/region).
  • á in láta: like ow in now for many speakers.
  • þ in þegar: like th in thin (voiceless).
  • Stress is usually on the first syllable: KENNarinn, LÁta, ÞEGar, PRÓfið, BYRJar.