Breakdown of Í mars vinnum við saman til að bæta samskiptin.
saman
together / on end (after a dative plural time noun)
við
we
að
to (infinitive marker)
í
in / into / to (before the hour, in telling time) / per (in frequency expressions)
vinna
to work (general labor, to do work)
til
to
bæta
to improve
mars
March
samskiptin
the communication
Questions & Answers about Í mars vinnum við saman til að bæta samskiptin.
Why does the sentence use til að instead of just að before the verb bæta?
The phrase til að means 'in order to' or 'for the purpose of.' While English often just uses 'to' (as in 'work together to improve'), Icelandic uses til að to clearly show the purpose of the action. You will also often see this written as til þess að, which means exactly the same thing.
Why is the word order vinnum við (work we) instead of við vinnum (we work)?
This is a classic example of the V2 rule! In Icelandic, the conjugated verb must be the second main chunk of information in a statement. Because this sentence starts with the time phrase Í mars, the verb vinnum has to come immediately after it, pushing the subject við behind the verb.
Why does the word for 'communication' (samskiptin) end in -in? Is it plural?
Yes, it is plural! The base word samskipti (communication or relations) is almost always used in its plural form in Icelandic. The -in at the end is the attached neuter plural definite article ('the'), making it 'the communication'.
What case is samskiptin in here?
It is in the accusative case because it is the direct object receiving the action of the verb bæta (to improve). Luckily, for neuter plural words like samskipti, the accusative form looks exactly the same as the nominative dictionary form.
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