Breakdown of Klukkan er korter í tíu.
vera
to be
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
tíu
ten
klukkan
the clock
Questions & Answers about Klukkan er korter í tíu.
Why do we say Klukkan er instead of just translating 'It is'?
When telling the time in Icelandic, you don't say 'It is'. Instead, you always say Klukkan er, which literally means 'The clock is'. Klukkan is the word klukka (clock) with the word 'the' attached to the end.
Is the word korter used for fractions outside of telling time?
No, korter specifically means a quarter of an hour (15 minutes). While it sounds a lot like the English word 'quarter', in Icelandic it is strictly used for time. You wouldn't use it to talk about a quarter of a pizza!
Doesn't í usually mean 'in'? Why does it mean 'to' here?
Yes, í usually translates to 'in'. But when talking about the minutes leading up to a new hour, Icelandic uses í. You can think of korter í tíu as meaning 'a quarter of an hour going IN to ten'.
How would I change this sentence to say 'a quarter PAST ten'?
To say 'past' the hour, you swap out í for the word yfir (over/past). A quarter past ten would be Klukkan er korter yfir tíu.