Í desember erum við mest heima.

In December we are mostly at home.

Breakdown of Í desember erum við mest heima.

• vera: to be
• við: we
• heima: at home
• í: in

Questions & Answers about Í desember erum við mest heima.

Why is the sentence Í desember erum við mest heima instead of Í desember við erum mest heima?

Because Icelandic normally follows a verb-second pattern in main clauses.

That means:

• the first slot can be a time phrase, place phrase, object, etc.
• but the finite verb still comes in the second slot

So when Í desember is placed first, the verb erum must come next:

• Í desember erum við mest heima.

If you start with the subject instead, you get:

• Við erum mest heima í desember.

Both are grammatical, but the first one puts extra focus on December.

What does erum mean, and what verb is it from?

Erum is the 1st person plural present tense form of vera, which means to be.

So:

• við erum = we are

Useful present-tense forms of vera are:

• ég er = I am
• þú ert = you are
• hann / hún / það er = he / she / it is
• við erum = we are
• þið eruð = you are (plural)
• þeir / þær / þau eru = they are

What does mest mean here?