Breakdown of Krakkinn var mjög óvær, er það ekki?
vera
to be
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
ekki
not
mjög
very
krakkinn
the kid
óvær
fussy
Questions & Answers about Krakkinn var mjög óvær, er það ekki?
Why is the tag question er það ekki in the present tense when the main sentence is in the past tense (var)?
In Icelandic, er það ekki functions as a fixed phrase meaning "right?" or "isn't that so?". Unlike in English, where the tag question shifts to match the tense of the main verb (like "wasn't he?"), Icelandic almost always keeps this tag in the present tense regardless of the main verb's tense.
Why does the tag use the neuter pronoun það instead of the masculine hann to match krakkinn?
How does the word óvær connect to this lesson's theme of waking and sleeping?
The adjective óvær means "restless" or "fussy" and is extremely common when talking about tired children who won't settle down. Its opposite is vær (calm, peaceful), which is often used in the context of sleeping soundly (sofa vært). A child who is óvær usually needs someone to actively put them to sleep (the transitive verb svæfa) rather than just falling asleep on their own (the intransitive verb sofna).
I usually see the word barn for "child". What is the difference between barn and krakki?
Barn is the standard, neutral word for "child" (and is a neuter noun). Krakki (a masculine noun) is a more informal, everyday word, perfectly matching the English word "kid". When you add the masculine definite article -nn, you get krakkinn (the kid).
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