Log inSign up

Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég hressari á morgun.

Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég hressari á morgun.
If I sleep longer tonight, then I will be more energetic tomorrow.
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Icelandic grammar and vocabulary.

Start learning Icelandic now

Questions & Answers about Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég hressari á morgun.

Why is þá there? Does it mean anything, and is it optional?

Þá literally means then. In conditional sentences it’s often used to mark the result clause: Ef X, þá Y = If X, then Y. It’s optional in many cases:

  • Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég hressari á morgun.
  • Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, verð ég hressari á morgun. Both are natural; þá adds a slightly clearer then-style connection.
Why does the word order change after the comma: þá verð ég (verb before subject)?

Icelandic is a strong verb-second (V2) language in main clauses: the finite verb typically comes in the 2nd “slot.”
In the result clause, the first element is þá, so the verb comes next: þá + verð + ég.
Even without þá, starting a main clause after an Ef-clause usually triggers the same inversion:

  • Ef …, verð ég … (not Ef …, ég verð … in standard style)
Why is it sef (present tense) instead of a future form like “will sleep”?

In Icelandic, as in English, the if-clause usually uses present tense to talk about the future:

  • Ef ég sef … = If I sleep … (tonight)
    The future meaning comes from context (and from the result clause).
Why does verð mean “will be” here? I thought verða means “become.”

Verða basically means become, but it’s very commonly used to express a future/result state in conditionals and predictions:

  • verða hressari = (to) become / end up (being) more refreshed So in English you often translate it as will be, even though the Icelandic idea is closer to will become.
Could I also say mun ég verða hressari for “I will be more refreshed”?

Yes. munu + infinitive is another future-like option:

  • … þá mun ég verða hressari á morgun. This can sound a bit more explicit or “forecast-like.” In everyday conditionals, simple verð is very common and natural.
What does lengur mean exactly, and why does it end in -ur?

Lengur is the comparative form of the adverb lengi (long / for a long time).
So sef lengur means sleep longer (i.e., for more time than usual/than otherwise). The -ur is part of the comparative adverb form.

Is hressari an adjective? Why doesn’t it seem to change form?

Yes—hressari is the comparative of hress (refreshed / lively). Comparatives have limited agreement. Here hressari works for both masculine and feminine ég:

  • Ég verð hressari. (speaker could be male or female) If the subject were neuter það, you’d normally use hressara:
  • Það verður hressara.
Why is it á morgun but í kvöld? Why different prepositions?

These are set, idiomatic time expressions:

  • í kvöld = tonight (literally “in evening-tonight”)
  • á morgun = tomorrow You generally just learn them as fixed pairings. (Similarly: í dag = today, í gær = yesterday.)
Does í kvöld mean “this evening” or “tonight”?
Usually tonight. It refers to the evening/night period of “today,” often from evening onward. If you specifically mean “this evening” in the sense of earlier evening plans, í kvöld still often covers it.
Why is there a comma after kvöld?

It’s standard punctuation to separate an initial conditional clause from the main clause:

  • Ef …, þá … You’ll often see a comma after an introductory subordinate clause in Icelandic writing.
Can I move the time phrases around, like á morgun or í kvöld, and still be correct?

Often yes, but it affects emphasis and must respect V2 word order in the main clause. For example:

  • Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég hressari á morgun. (neutral)
  • Ef ég sef lengur í kvöld, þá verð ég á morgun hressari. (possible, a bit marked)
  • Á morgun verð ég hressari ef ég sef lengur í kvöld. (also possible; main clause starts with Á morgun, then verb verð)
Is Ef always followed by normal subject–verb order like ef ég sef?

In an Ef-clause, you normally don’t use main-clause V2 the same way; a very common basic pattern is:

  • Ef + subject + verb … → Ef ég sef … So it often looks more “English-like” inside that subordinate clause, while the following main clause shows the strong V2 behavior.