Breakdown of Forritið uppfærist ekki án rafmagns.
Questions & Answers about Forritið uppfærist ekki án rafmagns.
-ið is the suffixed definite article for a neuter singular noun in Icelandic.
- forrit = a program
- forritið = the program
Here it’s also in the nominative case because it’s the subject of the sentence.
uppfærist is the present tense, 3rd person singular form of the verb uppfærast (the -st form). The base forms you’ll often see are:
- uppfæra = to update (something) (active/transitive)
- uppfærast = to get updated / update itself (middle/passive-like -st form)
So Forritið uppfærist literally behaves like The program updates itself / gets updated.
Not exactly the same as English passive, but it’s often used with a similar meaning. Icelandic -st verbs commonly express:
- something happening “by itself,” or
- an impersonal/passive-like idea where the agent isn’t mentioned.
Compare:
- Forritið uppfærist. = The program updates (itself) / gets updated.