Breakdown of Ég ætla að hlaða símann í tvo klukkutíma.
ég
I
að
to (infinitive marker)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
tveir
two
síminn
the telephone
ætla
to intend
klukkutíminn
the hour
hlaða
to charge
Questions & Answers about Ég ætla að hlaða símann í tvo klukkutíma.
Why do we use í here instead of a word that translates directly to "for"?
In Icelandic, to express that you are doing something for a certain amount of time, you use the preposition í followed by the accusative case. So, í tvo klukkutíma means "for two hours."
Why is the number two written as tvo instead of tveir?
Because time durations with í always trigger the accusative case. The word for hour, klukkutími, is masculine, so we must use the masculine accusative form of the number two, which is tvo.
Is klukkutíma singular or plural here?
It is plural. The base word is klukkutími (hour, literally "clock-time"), which is a weak masculine noun. In the accusative plural, it becomes klukkutíma.
Why is the phone written as símann instead of síminn?
It is the direct object of the verb hlaða (to charge). Because the action is happening to the phone, the nominative form síminn (the phone) changes to its accusative form, símann.
Why is að used between ætla and hlaða?
When you use ætla (to intend / to be going to) with another verb to express the future, you must connect them with the infinitive marker að, much like the word "to" in English.
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