Word
Mig langar ekki að sofa.
Meaning
I do not want to sleep.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Mig langar ekki að sofa.
Why does this sentence start with mig instead of ég?
The verb langa (to want) is special. Instead of using a normal subject in the nominative case like ég (I), it requires a "quirky subject" in the accusative case. This means you must use mig (me) to say "I want". Literally, the sentence is structured as "It longs me...".
Does the verb langar change if I want to say "we do not want" or "you do not want"?
No, it stays exactly the same! When an Icelandic verb takes a quirky subject in the accusative or dative case, the verb freezes in the "he/she/it" form. So whether it is mig langar (I want), þig langar (you want), or okkur langar (we want), the verb is always langar.
Why does ekki come after the verb, rather than before it like in English?
In Icelandic statements, the main conjugated verb is almost always the second piece of information in the sentence. Because the verb langar is fixed in that second spot, the negative word ekki (not) has to come immediately after it. The literal word order is "Me wants not to sleep."
What is the purpose of að before sofa?