Breakdown of Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur.
Questions & Answers about Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur.
Can you break the sentence down word by word?
Yes:
Við = we
This is the nominative form, because it is the subject of the sentence.förum = go / are going / leave
This is the 1st person plural present-tense form of fara (to go).héðan = from here
This is an adverb of movement away from a place.eftir tíu mínútur = in ten minutes / after ten minutes
Here it means ten minutes from now.
So the structure is basically:
We + go/leave + from here + in ten minutes
Why is förum in the present tense if the sentence refers to the future?
That is very normal in Icelandic.
Icelandic often uses the present tense for a planned or near-future action, just as English can say:
- We leave in ten minutes
- We’re leaving in ten minutes
So Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur is naturally understood as a future action because of the time expression eftir tíu mínútur.
Does förum mean go or leave?
Literally, fara means to go. But in this sentence, because of héðan (from here), the most natural English meaning is leave:
- Við förum héðan = We’re leaving here / We’re going away from here
So the Icelandic verb is still basically go, but English often prefers leave in this kind of context.
What is héðan, and why isn’t it just hér?
Hér means here, but héðan means from here.
Icelandic often uses special adverbs to show location vs movement:
- hér = here
- hingað = to here / сюда-type meaning
- héðan = from here
So:
- Við erum hér = We are here
- Komdu hingað = Come here
- Við förum héðan = We’re leaving from here
Could I say frá hér instead of héðan?
Usually, no—not in natural Icelandic.
Icelandic normally prefers the single adverb héðan for from here. Using frá hér sounds unnatural in ordinary speech.
So the idiomatic choice is:
- héðan = from here
not usually:
- frá hér
Why does fara become förum?
This is because of a common vowel change in Icelandic called u-umlaut.
The verb is:
- fara = to go
But in the við form, the ending is -um, and that u affects the stem vowel:
- fara → förum
So the a changes to ö before a following u in the next syllable.
This kind of change happens in many Icelandic words and forms, so it is something learners get used to over time.
What exactly does eftir tíu mínútur mean here?
Here it means in ten minutes, that is, ten minutes from now.
Word-for-word, English learners often notice that eftir can look like after, and that is not wrong. But in this sentence, the natural English meaning is:
- We’re leaving in ten minutes
rather than a stiff literal version like:
- We’re leaving after ten minutes
So in this kind of time expression, eftir + time span often corresponds to English in + time span.
Why is it tíu mínútur and not tíu mínútu?
Because the sentence refers to ten minutes, so the noun has to be plural.
- mínúta = minute
- mínútur = minutes
Since tíu means ten, the plural is required:
- tíu mínútur = ten minutes
Why is it tíu mínútur and not tíu mínútum?
Because eftir can take different cases depending on meaning, and in this time-expression use, it takes the accusative.
So here:
- eftir tíu mínútur = in / after ten minutes
The noun phrase is in the accusative plural, and for mínúta the accusative plural form is:
- mínútur
not:
- mínútum (which is dative plural)
This is a good example of why prepositions in Icelandic must often be learned together with the case they require in each meaning.
Can the word order change?
Yes. Icelandic word order is flexible, but there are rules.
The original sentence:
- Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur
You can also say:
- Eftir tíu mínútur förum við héðan
This is very natural and puts more focus on the time.
Notice what happens: when Eftir tíu mínútur comes first, the verb förum still comes next. That is because Icelandic normally follows a verb-second pattern in main clauses.
So:
- Við förum ...
- Eftir tíu mínútur förum við ...
are both good, but:
- Eftir tíu mínútur við förum ...
is not correct standard word order.
Could I say Við munum fara héðan eftir tíu mínútur instead?
Yes, you could, and it would mean something like We will leave here in ten minutes.
But in everyday Icelandic, the simpler present-tense version is often more natural:
- Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur
Using munu to make an explicit future is possible, but it can sound more formal, more emphatic, or less conversational depending on context.
So for a simple planned future, the original sentence is usually the most natural choice.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning IcelandicMaster Icelandic — from Við förum héðan eftir tíu mínútur to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓ Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓ Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions