After "hello," conversation runs on a handful of fixed exchanges that are almost completely automatic for native speakers — and almost completely opaque to learners, because they cannot be translated word for word. The single most important thing to understand here is that Hvað segirðu? is not a real question. It looks like "what do you say?" but it functions exactly like English "how's it going?", and it expects a ritual answer — allt gott — no matter how your day is actually going. Learn these as frozen blocks, with the right answer paired to each opener, and you will sound natural from your first conversation.
Hvað segirðu (gott)? — the core ritual
The most common Icelandic small-talk opener is Hvað segirðu? or, very often, Hvað segirðu gott? Literally it is "What do you say (good)?", but it means simply "How are you? / How's it going?" The expected reply is Allt gott ("all good") or Allt fínt, takk ("all fine, thanks"), and you bounce it back with en þú? ("and you?").
Hvað segirðu? – Allt gott, en þú?
How's it going? – All good, and you?
Hvað segirðu gott? – Bara gott, takk. Hvað segirðu sjálf?
How are you doing? – Just good, thanks. How about you? (to a woman)
Hvað segirðu fínt?
How are you doing? (lit. 'what do you say fine?' — same phatic opener)
Two grammar points hide inside this little phrase. First, segirðu is segir þú fused together — the pronoun þú has clitic-shrunk onto the verb, a pattern you will meet everywhere in spoken Icelandic. Second, the gott is neuter ("good," referring vaguely to "everything / how things are"), which is why the answer is allt gott and not allur góður. You do not need to dissect this to use it — but noticing it now means the grammar will feel familiar when you meet it formally.
The answers: allt gott, allt fínt, bara fínt
The stock replies are interchangeable and upbeat by default. Allt gott ("all good"), allt fínt ("all fine"), bara fínt ("just fine"), bara gott ("just good") — usually rounded off with takk ("thanks"). Like English "fine, thanks," they are the social default; you give them even on a fairly ordinary day. To return the question you tack on en þú? or en sjálf/sjálfur? ("and yourself?").
Allt fínt, takk. En þú?
All fine, thanks. And you?
Bara fínt, ekkert að frétta.
Just fine, nothing to report.
Hvað er að frétta? — what's new?
A second very common opener is Hvað er að frétta? — literally "what is there to report?", i.e. "What's new? / What's up?" The default answer is Ekkert sérstakt ("nothing special") or Ekkert að frétta ("nothing to report"). Again, this is phatic: "nothing special" is the polite default even if plenty is going on.
Hvað er að frétta? – Ekkert sérstakt, bara hið venjulega.
What's new? – Nothing special, just the usual.
Hvað er eiginlega að frétta af þér?
So what's been going on with you? (warmer, more curious version)
Meeting someone: Gaman að hitta þig, Sömuleiðis
When you are introduced to someone, the set phrase is Gaman að hitta þig ("Nice to meet you," literally "fun to meet you") or Gaman að kynnast þér ("nice to get to know you"). The correct, almost obligatory reply is Sömuleiðis — "likewise." This one word does a lot of work, and learners who do not know it often freeze or over-explain; sömuleiðis is the natural, expected echo.
Gaman að hitta þig. – Sömuleiðis!
Nice to meet you. – Likewise!
Gaman að kynnast þér, ég hef heyrt mikið um þig. – Sömuleiðis, takk fyrir.
Nice to meet you, I've heard a lot about you. – Likewise, thank you.
Sömuleiðis also returns any good wish: someone says góða helgi! ("have a good weekend!") and you answer sömuleiðis! ("you too!"). Treat it as your all-purpose "same to you."
A full exchange, start to finish
Put together, a typical opening between two people who know each other runs like this — fast, automatic, and almost entirely formulaic:
Hæ! Hvað segirðu? – Allt gott, en þú? – Bara fínt, takk.
Hi! How's it going? – All good, and you? – Just fine, thanks.
Hvað er að frétta? – Ekkert sérstakt. En hjá þér?
What's new? – Nothing special. And with you?
Notice that nobody is exchanging information — it is social glue. Trying to give a detailed, honest answer ("well, actually my week has been difficult…") to Hvað segirðu? lands as oddly as it would to launch into your real feelings when an English speaker says "how's it going?" in passing.
Common Mistakes
❌ Hvað segirðu? – Ég segi 'halló'.
Incorrect — this answers the phrase literally; it is not a real 'what do you say' question.
✅ Hvað segirðu? – Allt gott, en þú?
How's it going? – All good, and you?
Hvað segirðu? means "how's it going?" Answer with allt gott / bara fínt, never with what you literally "say."
❌ Gaman að hitta þig. – Takk, bless.
Awkward — the natural reply is sömuleiðis ('likewise'), not a thank-you-and-goodbye.
✅ Gaman að hitta þig. – Sömuleiðis!
Nice to meet you. – Likewise!
The expected echo to "nice to meet you" is sömuleiðis. Skipping it leaves the ritual half-finished.
❌ Allt góður, takk.
Incorrect — the answer uses the neuter gott (referring to 'everything'), not the masculine góður.
✅ Allt gott, takk.
All good, thanks.
The stock answer is allt gott — neuter gott, agreeing with the neuter allt ("everything").
❌ Hvað segir þú gott? said very stiffly in casual chat
Over-careful — in speech the pronoun fuses to the verb: segirðu.
✅ Hvað segirðu gott?
How are you doing?
In real speech segir þú contracts to segirðu. The fully separated segir þú is not wrong, but the clitic form is what you actually hear.
Key Takeaways
- Hvað segirðu (gott)? = "how's it going?" — phatic, not literal. Answer allt gott / allt fínt / bara fínt, takk, then en þú?.
- Hvað er að frétta? = "what's new?" — default answer ekkert sérstakt.
- Gaman að hitta þig = "nice to meet you" → reply sömuleiðis ("likewise").
- Sömuleiðis also returns any good wish ("you too!").
- Hidden grammar previews: segirðu = clitic segir + þú; gott is neuter, matching allt.
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Start learning Icelandic→Related Topics
- Greetings, Openers, and ClosingsA2 — The formulae that frame an Icelandic conversation — gender-agreeing greetings (sæll to a man, sæl to a woman), the how-are-you ritual (Hvað segirðu gott? — Allt fínt), the attention-getter heyrðu, and leave-takings (bless, sjáumst, hafðu það gott).
- já, jú, nei, jæja: The Answer SystemA2 — Icelandic's three-way answer system — já 'yes' to a positive question, jú 'yes' contradicting a negative question (like German doch / French si), nei 'no' — plus the indispensable, culturally loaded discourse word jæja (well / so / anyway / let's wrap up).