Breakdown of Ég geri ráð fyrir að fundurinn byrji klukkan níu.
ég
I
níu
nine
byrja
to start
fundurinn
the meeting
klukkan
the clock
gera ráð fyrir
to assume, to expect
Questions & Answers about Ég geri ráð fyrir að fundurinn byrji klukkan níu.
Why is the verb byrji in the subjunctive rather than the indicative byrjar?
The phrase gera ráð fyrir að (to assume that) expresses a degree of uncertainty, expectation, or subjective belief. Verbs or phrases that express this kind of subjectivity trigger the subjunctive mood in the following subordinate clause, which is why we must use the subjunctive form byrji here.
What is the literal translation of the idiom gera ráð fyrir, and how does that help explain its meaning?
The noun ráð can mean 'advice', 'counsel', or 'plan'. Literally, the phrase translates to 'to make a plan for' or 'to make an allowance for'. Thinking of it this way makes sense of why it is used to mean 'assume' or 'expect'—you are factoring the assumption into your plans.
If I replaced the að clause with a pronoun to just say 'I assume it', what case would follow fyrir?
It would take the dative case. While the preposition fyrir often takes the accusative when it means 'for', in this specific phrasal verb it governs the dative. So, 'I assume it' would be ég geri ráð fyrir því.
Could I use býst við instead of geri ráð fyrir in this sentence?
Yes, saying ég býst við að fundurinn byrji klukkan níu would also be perfectly natural. Búast við focuses slightly more on the psychological anticipation of an event ('expecting' it to happen), whereas gera ráð fyrir implies a logical assumption. In everyday conversation, they are frequently interchangeable.
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