Breakdown of Ferskvatnið þitt er tilbúið fyrir fiskinn.
vera
to be
fiskurinn
the fish
þinn
your (sg.)
fyrir
for (on someone's behalf; as in "thanks for")
tilbúinn
ready
ferskvatnið
the freshwater
Questions & Answers about Ferskvatnið þitt er tilbúið fyrir fiskinn.
Since we are learning about expletive "það", could I rewrite this as "Það er ferskvatnið þitt tilbúið..." to mean "There is your fresh water ready..."?
No. Expletive (or dummy) það is used to introduce new information, which requires an indefinite subject. Because ferskvatnið þitt (your fresh water) is definite, you cannot use the það presentation construction here, whether the clause is regular or inverted.
Why does the possessive pronoun come after the noun (Ferskvatnið þitt) instead of before it?
In standard Icelandic, possessive pronouns normally follow the noun, and the noun must have the definite article attached (hence ferskvatn-ið). Placing the pronoun first (þitt ferskvatn) without the article is grammatically correct but sounds very formal, poetic, or heavily emphatic.
Why is the adjective tilbúið instead of the standard masculine form tilbúinn?
Adjectives linked by the verb vera (to be) must agree with the subject in gender, number, and case. Since the subject ferskvatnið is a neuter noun in the nominative singular, the adjective takes the neuter singular nominative form tilbúið.
Why does fyrir trigger the accusative case (fiskinn) here instead of the dative?
The preposition fyrir governs the accusative case when it means "intended for" or "on behalf of". It typically takes the dative when dealing with certain spatial or temporal meanings (like "in front of" or "ago"). Thus, the nominative fiskurinn becomes the accusative fiskinn.
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