Stefnumótið var stutt.

Because Icelandic usually puts the definite article on the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like the.

• stefnumót = date
• stefnumótið = the date

So -ið is the definite ending here.

-ið is the definite article ending for a neuter singular noun in this form.

In this sentence, stefnumótið is the subject, so it is in the nominative case. For many neuter nouns, the nominative singular definite ending is -ið.

There are two useful clues here:

• The definite form is stefnumótið, and -ið is a typical neuter singular definite ending.
• The adjective is stutt, which is the neuter singular form used to match the noun.

In a dictionary, stefnumót would also be marked as a neuter noun.

Var is the past tense of vera, which means to be.

So:

• er = is
• var = was

In this sentence, var is the singular past form used with the singular subject stefnumótið.

Because Icelandic adjectives have to agree with the noun they describe.

Here, stefnumótið is:

• singular
• neuter
• nominative

So the adjective also appears in the singular neuter nominative form:

• masculine: stuttur
• feminine: stutt
• neuter: stutt

That is why the sentence has stutt.

That is a very common question.

After vera and similar verbs, Icelandic normally uses a predicate adjective, and predicate adjectives usually appear in the strong form, not the weak form.

So:

• Stefnumótið var stutt = The date was short
• stutta stefnumótið = the short date if the adjective is placed directly before the noun

In other words:

• after was, use stutt
• directly before a definite noun, you often get the weak form stutta

It is in the nominative case because it is the subject of the sentence.

In Stefnumótið var stutt, the thing being talked about is the date, so that noun is the subject, and subjects are normally in the nominative.

Yes. This is the normal order for a simple statement:

• Stefnumótið = subject
• var = verb
• stutt = complement

So the pattern is basically Subject – Verb – Complement, just like in English here.

However, Icelandic is a verb-second language, so if you move another element to the front, the verb still usually stays in second position:

• Í gær var stefnumótið stutt = Yesterday the date was short

Not always. It often does mean a romantic date, but it can also mean an arranged meeting or appointment depending on context.

So the exact nuance depends on the situation. In many beginner examples, though, learners will most naturally understand it as a romantic date.

A rough guide is:

• Stefnumótið: stress the first syllable, STEF-nu-mó-tið
• var: like var with an a closer to the vowel in father
• stutt: short and clipped

A few sound notes:

• ó is a long o sound
• ð is like the th in this
• the u in stutt does not have an exact English equivalent, but a rounded short vowel is a good approximation

The main stress in Icelandic almost always falls on the first syllable, so here the strongest stress is on STEF-.