Breakdown of Starfsráðgjafinn spyr um hvernig starfsánægjan er á vinnustaðnum.
vera
to be
hvernig
how
spyrja
to ask
á
onto / on / in (static location) / on (a day of the week)
um
about
vinnustaðurinn
the workplace
starfsráðgjafinn
the career counselor
starfsánægjan
the job satisfaction
Questions & Answers about Starfsráðgjafinn spyr um hvernig starfsánægjan er á vinnustaðnum.
Why is the dummy pronoun það missing after um?
This is the core rule for prepositions followed by indirect questions. When a preposition like um introduces a clause that starts with a question word like hvernig (how), hvað (what), or hvar (where), the dummy pronoun það is usually dropped. If the clause instead started with the conjunction að (that), you would have to keep it: spyr um það að...
Is it strictly forbidden to say spyr um það hvernig...?
No, it is not forbidden. Including það before a question word is grammatically correct and sometimes used for extra emphasis or in very formal contexts. However, dropping it, as shown in this sentence, is the standard and sounds much more natural in everyday Icelandic.
Does the preposition um control the case of starfsánægjan?
No. Even though um normally governs the accusative case, its power does not cross over into the next clause. The indirect question hvernig starfsánægjan er is its own self-contained clause. Starfsánægjan is in the nominative case because it acts as the subject of the verb er inside that clause.
Since this is an indirect question, could the verb er be in the subjunctive mood (sé)?
Yes! You will often see sentences like this written as ...hvernig starfsánægjan sé á vinnustaðnum. Using the subjunctive sé is a bit more formal and emphasizes that it is an indirect question reflecting someone else's perspective. The indicative er used here is slightly more casual and direct, but both are entirely correct.
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