Breakdown of Það er tímafrekt að skilja beyginguna.
vera
to be
það
it / there (existential) / the one (n)
skilja
to understand
að
to (infinitive marker)
tímafrekur
time-consuming
beygingin
the inflection
Questions & Answers about Það er tímafrekt að skilja beyginguna.
Why is the adjective tímafrekt in the neuter form here?
It is in the neuter singular form to match the dummy subject Það. The word Það is standing in for the real subject of the sentence, which is the entire infinitive phrase að skilja beyginguna (to understand the inflection). When describing an action or an abstract phrase like this, the adjective must always be neuter.
Could we just say Að skilja beyginguna er tímafrekt instead of using Það?
Yes, structurally you can put the infinitive phrase first, just like saying 'To understand the inflection is time-consuming' in English. However, Icelandic strongly prefers the syntax we see here, where the dummy subject Það takes the front seat and pushes the 'heavy' infinitive phrase to the end of the sentence.
Why is the word for 'the inflection' written as beyginguna?
The base noun is beyging, which is a feminine word. In this sentence, it is the direct object of the verb skilja (to understand), so it takes the accusative case. The ending -una is the feminine accusative definite article, making it 'the inflection'.
What is the literal breakdown of the word tímafrekt?
It comes from combining tími (time) with the adjective frekur, which means greedy, demanding, or pushy. So the compound word literally means 'time-greedy' or 'demanding of time' — a great way to remember the Icelandic word for 'time-consuming'.
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