Sólin bræðir snjó á götunni.

The sun melts snow on the street.

Breakdown of Sólin bræðir snjó á götunni.

• á: on
• gatan: the street
• sólin: the sun
• bræða: to melt
• snjórinn: the snow

Questions & Answers about Sólin bræðir snjó á götunni.

What is the definite article in Icelandic and why is Sólin written as one word?

In Icelandic the definite article is suffixed to the noun instead of using a separate word. For a feminine noun like sól (meaning sun), the definite nominative singular ending is -in, so sól + -in = sólin.

Why does snjór lose its final -r in this sentence and appear as snjó?

Masculine nouns ending in -r typically drop that letter in non-nominative cases. Here snjór (nominative snow) becomes snjó in the accusative singular (direct object) by removing the final -r.

Why is there no article before snjó?

This is the indefinite form of snow, so it appears without a definite article. If you wanted the snow you would use the definite form snjóinn.

What is the role of á in á götunni and why is götunni in the dative case?

The preposition á in Icelandic takes the dative when indicating location on/at. Since á götunni means on the street, götunni is the definite dative singular of gata.

How do you form götunni from gata, and what causes the double n?

gata is a feminine noun whose oblique stem is götu (note the umlaut a → ö). The definite dative singular suffix is -inni, so you combine götu + nni = götunni. The double n comes directly from that suffix.

What is the infinitive of bræðir, and how is the 3rd person singular present formed?

The infinitive is bræða (meaning to melt, when it acts on something). To form the 3rd person singular present you drop -a and add -ir:
bræða → bræð- + ir = bræðir (meaning it melts).

What person and number is bræðir, and why is the subject pronoun omitted?

bræðir is the 3rd person singular present. In Icelandic, subject pronouns for he, she, or it are usually dropped because the verb ending itself shows person and number.

How would you say the snow melts on the street if you don’t mention the sun?

You would use the intransitive verb bráðna (meaning to melt without a direct object) and make snjór the subject:
Snjór bráðnar á götunni.