Hugbúnaðurinn kostar meira en ég bjóst við.

The software costs more than I expected.

Breakdown of Hugbúnaðurinn kostar meira en ég bjóst við.

• ég: I
• kosta: to cost
• en: than
• hugbúnaðurinn: the software
• meira: more
• búast við: to expect

Questions & Answers about Hugbúnaðurinn kostar meira en ég bjóst við.

Why does hugbúnaðurinn end with -inn instead of having a separate article?

In Icelandic the definite article (the English “the”) is not a separate word but a suffix attached to the noun. hugbúnaður means “software” (indefinite) and hugbúnaðurinn means “the software.”

Why is meira en used here, and what English words does it correspond to?

meira is the comparative adverb “more” and en functions like the English “than” in comparisons. So kostar meira en literally means “costs more than.”

Why is the form meira used instead of meiri in this sentence?

When you compare things by saying “costs more,” you need the adverbial comparative, which in Icelandic is meira. Meiri is the comparative adjective used attributively before a masculine or feminine noun (e.g. meiri vinna “more work”), while meira is both the neuter adjective and the adverbial form.

Why isn’t there a verb-second inversion after en, as we see with the conjunction en meaning “but”?

Here en is the comparative particle “than,” not the coordinating conjunction “but.” It does not trigger the V2 (verb-second) rule. The clause en ég bjóst við remains in normal subject-verb-object (SVO) order.

What does að búast við mean, and why is við used without an explicit object?

Að búast við means “to expect.” The preposition við normally takes an object (what you expect), but since the referent (“the higher cost”) is clear from context, the object is simply omitted—just like in English “more than I expected.”

Could you include a pronoun after við, for example …en ég bjóst við það?

Yes. A fuller version would be meira en ég bjóst við það or meira en ég bjóst við því, where það/því refers back to “the cost.” However, in everyday speech Icelanders often drop that pronoun when the meaning is obvious.

What tense and person is bjóst, and how does it relate to býst?

bjóst is the first person singular past tense (preterite) of að búast.

• ég býst við = “I expect” (present)
• ég bjóst við = “I expected” (past)

Can I rephrase the sentence using dýrari instead of kostar meira?

Absolutely. You can say Hugbúnaðurinn er dýrari en ég bjóst við, which means “The software is more expensive than I expected.” Both constructions (kostar meira vs. er dýrari) are very common.