Breakdown of Við erum að horfa á sjónvarpið.
vera
to be
við
we
að
to (infinitive marker)
á
onto / on / in (static location) / on (a day of the week)
horfa
to watch
sjónvarpið
the television
Questions & Answers about Við erum að horfa á sjónvarpið.
How does the erum að structure work here?
It forms the present continuous action, meaning 'are watching' right now. You take the verb vera (to be), conjugate it for við as erum (we are), and add að plus the dictionary form (infinitive) of the action verb, horfa.
Why do we need the word á after horfa?
In Icelandic, the verb for 'to watch' or 'to look at' is always paired with the preposition á to form horfa á. You cannot just use horfa by itself when pointing out what you are watching.
Why does sjónvarpið end in -ið?
The -ið suffix is the attached word for 'the' (the definite article) for neuter nouns. English speakers usually just say 'watching television' without 'the', but in Icelandic, it is much more natural to say you are watching 'the' television (sjónvarpið).
Does the preposition á change the ending of sjónvarpið?
The preposition á forces the following word into the accusative case. However, because sjónvarp is a neuter noun, its accusative form looks exactly the same as its basic dictionary form. So, sjónvarpið does not visibly change here!
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