Breakdown of Kennarinn er að koma nákvæmlega klukkan korter í níu.
vera
to be
kennarinn
the teacher
koma
to come
að
to (infinitive marker)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
níu
nine
klukkan
the clock
korterið
the quarter (of an hour)
nákvæmlega
exactly
Questions & Answers about Kennarinn er að koma nákvæmlega klukkan korter í níu.
How does korter í níu translate to 'a quarter to nine'?
Korter means a quarter (15 minutes), and í translates to 'in' or 'to'. In Icelandic, you use korter í to mean 'a quarter to' the upcoming hour. So korter í níu is 15 minutes to nine (8:45). If it were 15 minutes past nine, you would use yfir (over) to make korter yfir níu.
Why is the word klukkan used before the time?
When stating a specific time on the clock, you usually say klukkan (the clock) right before the time. Even though we just say 'at' in English, Icelandic uses klukkan to indicate 'at the hour of'.
Why use er að koma instead of just a single verb for 'arrives'?
Er að koma is the continuous present tense, meaning 'is arriving' or 'is coming'. Just like in English, Icelandic forms this by using the verb 'to be' (er), the word að, and the base form of the main verb (koma). It emphasizes that the arrival is an active, ongoing action.
How do we get kennarinn from the base word for 'teacher'?
In Icelandic, the word for 'the' is usually attached to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word before it. Kennari means 'a teacher', and adding the ending -nn makes it kennarinn, meaning 'the teacher'.
What does the -lega ending on nákvæmlega do?
The word nákvæmlega means 'exactly'. It comes from the describing word (adjective) nákvæmur, which means 'exact'. The -lega ending works just like the '-ly' ending in English, turning 'exact' into 'exactly'.
Learn Kennarinn er að koma nákvæmlega klukkan korter í níu and more in Icelandic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free