Breakdown of Kettirnir ráfa oft hingað til að róta í ruslatunnunni.
kötturinn
the cat
oft
often
að
to (infinitive marker)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
hingað
here (direction)
til
to
ráfa
to wander
róta
to rummage
ruslatunnan
the trash can (outdoor)
Questions & Answers about Kettirnir ráfa oft hingað til að róta í ruslatunnunni.
How would I rewrite this sentence to express surprise using the modal skulu, as in the current lesson?
You would introduce it with a phrase of surprise and put skulu in the að clause. For example: Það er ótrúlegt að kettirnir skuli oft ráfa hingað... (It is incredible that the cats should often wander here...). The original conjugated verb ráfa changes to the infinitive because it now follows the modal skuli.
Why is hingað used instead of hér for "here"?
Icelandic makes a strict distinction between location and motion. Hér means "here" as in a static location (where something is). Hingað means "to here" or "hither," showing motion toward the speaker. Since the cats are wandering to this place, you must use the directional adverb hingað.
Could we drop til and just say að róta for "to rummage"?
No, because here the phrase expresses purpose: "in order to rummage." While English often uses the simple infinitive "to" to show purpose, Icelandic usually requires til að followed by the infinitive when you mean "for the purpose of doing something."
Why is ruslatunnunni in the dative case?
The preposition í governs the dative case when it describes a static location where an action takes place. Although the cats moved to get here, the action of rummaging (róta) happens entirely inside the trash can, making it a static location context.
What are the components of the word ruslatunnunni?
It is a compound of rusl (trash) and tunna (barrel or can). The base dative singular form is ruslatunnu, and adding the attached dative feminine definite article -nni gives us ruslatunnunni (the trash can).
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