Breakdown of Maðurinn varð fyrir slysi í vinnunni.
maðurinn
the man
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
vinnan
the work
slysið
the accident
verða fyrir
to be subjected to, to suffer (+ Dative)
Questions & Answers about Maðurinn varð fyrir slysi í vinnunni.
Why is varð fyrir used here to mean "suffered"?
The verb verða typically means "to become" or "must", but the phrasal verb verða fyrir e-u means to be subjected to something, usually an unexpected or negative event. It is the standard way to say someone "was in" or "suffered" an accident in Icelandic.
The preposition fyrir can take either the accusative or the dative. Why is slysi in the dative case?
When used in the fixed phrase verða fyrir (to be subjected to), the preposition fyrir always dictates the dative case. This is why the neuter noun slys takes its dative form, slysi.
Why does the word for work (vinnunni) have the definite article when we just say "at work" in English?
Icelandic strongly prefers the definite article here. When talking about being at your own job or workplace, you say í vinnunni (literally "in the work"). Using it without the article (í vinnu) would mean something closer to "in employment" generally, rather than being physically present at your job.
Why do we use the preposition í for "at work" instead of á?
While á is used for many locations in Icelandic, work (vinna) traditionally pairs with the preposition í. You go to work (í vinnuna, accusative) and you are at work (í vinnunni, dative).
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