Present participle

The present participle in Icelandic is easy to form and easy to use.

Usage

It’s often used with verbs that describe a state, such as liggja, sitja and standa, as well as sofa and vaka:

Barnið er sofandi í vöggunni sinni.

It’s rarely used a true verb – it actually occurs most frequently as an adjective or adverb, providing more detail about a state or the nature of an action:

Þessi kvikmynd var svo spennandi!
Kristján fer hjólandi í vinnu á mánudögum.
Kennarinn sat á stólnum brosandi.

When used as an adjective, it does not decline (the ending never changes).

Formation

The present participle is formed by removing the final -a from the infinitive and adding -andi (talandi, hlæjandi). If the verb ends in -á, simply add -andi (sláandi).