Við grillum með grilltönginni eða eldum inni.

Yes, við here is the subject pronoun meaning we.

A useful extra point is that við can also be a preposition meaning with in other sentences, but that is a completely different word function. In this sentence:

• Við = we
• með = with

So even though both are short common words, they are not interchangeable.

Because both verbs are in the present tense, first person plural: we grill / we cook.

In Icelandic, verbs change form depending on the subject. Here:

• við grillum = we grill
• við eldum = we cook

The -um ending is a very common ending for we in the present tense.

For example:

• ég elda = I cook
• við eldum = we cook

So the ending is showing who is doing the action.

Because Icelandic, like English, often avoids repeating the subject when two verbs share the same subject.

So:

• Við grillum með grilltönginni eða eldum inni.

means literally:

• We grill with the tongs or cook inside.

The subject we applies to both verbs:

• grillum
• eldum

You could repeat við, but it would usually sound unnecessary unless you wanted emphasis.

The dictionary form is að grilla, meaning to grill.

So:

• að grilla = to grill
• við grillum = we grill

This is a useful example of an Icelandic verb built from a word that is quite similar to English grill.

The base form is að elda, meaning to cook.

So:

• að elda = to cook
• við eldum = we cook

The difference is roughly:

• grilla = grill, barbecue
• elda = cook

So grillum is more specific, while eldum is more general.

Because the preposition með normally takes the dative case in this kind of meaning.

The basic noun is:

• grilltöng = grill tongs / a grilling tong

But after með it becomes dative:

• með grilltönginni = with the grill tongs

So the ending changes because the preposition controls the case.

Grilltönginni is the dative singular definite form of grilltöng.

You can break it down like this:

• grilltöng = grill tongs / grilling tong
• -in / -inn / -ið type endings in Icelandic often mark the
• here the form becomes grilltönginni = the grill tongs in the dative singular

So this one word contains both:

• the noun
• the meaning of the

That is very common in Icelandic, because the definite article is usually attached to the end of the noun.

Because Icelandic usually expresses the definite article as a suffix attached to the noun.

Compare:

• grilltöng = grill tongs / a grilling tong
• grilltöngin = the grill tongs / the grilling tong
• grilltönginni = to/with/from the grill tongs, depending on case usage

So instead of a separate word like English the, Icelandic usually adds the definiteness directly to the noun.

This is a good vocabulary question. Languages do not always divide objects the same way.

In Icelandic, grilltöng is commonly treated as a singular noun, even though the object has two arms and English usually uses the plural word tongs.

So:

• grilltöng = grill tongs

This is similar to how different languages may use singular where English prefers plural, or the other way around.

Eða means or.

It links the two alternative actions:

• Við grillum með grilltönginni
• eldum inni

So the sentence gives two possibilities:

• we grill with the grill tongs
• or we cook inside

Inni means inside or indoors.

Here it works as an adverb, so it does not need a noun after it.

• eldum inni = cook inside / cook indoors

This is similar to English expressions like:

• We ate inside
• Stay inside

So inni is not an adjective here and does not describe a noun; it tells you where the action happens.

The word order is quite normal.

The structure is:

• Við = subject
• grillum = verb
• með grilltönginni = prepositional phrase
• eða = conjunction
• eldum = second verb
• inni = adverb

So the pattern is basically:

• We grill with the grill tongs or cook inside.

That is very close to natural English word order. The main things that may feel unfamiliar are not the order, but:

• the verb endings
• the case after með
• the definite article attached to the noun

In Icelandic, adverbs can sometimes move around more than in English, but eldum inni is the most straightforward and natural version here.

So this sentence sounds normal as:

• ... eða eldum inni.

Moving inni elsewhere might be possible in some contexts for style or emphasis, but for a learner, this is the best pattern to remember:

• verb + location adverb

Very often, yes. In basic learner usage, it is safest to remember:

• með usually takes the dative

That is why we get:

• með grilltönginni

rather than a nominative form.

As you learn more Icelandic, you will see that mastering prepositions and the cases they require is a major part of the language. This sentence is a good example of that.