Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Fyrirgefðu, geturðu tengt símann minn við hleðslutækið? - Excuse me, can you connect my phone to the charger?

It’s the 2nd-person singular imperative of “to forgive,” used idiomatically as “Excuse me” or “Sorry.” It’s fine and friendly when addressing one person. For strangers or extra politeness, use plural/polite forms like Afsakið or Fyrirgefið.

Why is there a comma after Fyrirgefðu?

Interjections such as “Excuse me,” “Hey,” “Well,” etc., are commonly set off with a comma in Icelandic. It mirrors spoken intonation: short pause after Fyrirgefðu before the request. Without the comma isn’t “wrong,” but the comma is standard.

How do I pronounce Fyrirgefðu and geturðu? What is that letter ð?

ð is a voiced “th,” like the sound in English “this.”
Fyrirgefðu approximately: FIR‑ir‑gev‑thu (both r’s are tapped; the final ðu has that voiced “th”).
geturðu approximately: GEH‑tur‑thu.
Tip: Don’t confuse ð (voiced th) with þ (voiceless th, as in “thing”).

What’s going on with geturðu vs. getur þú?

It’s the clitic form of the pronoun: getur þú (“can you”) typically contracts to geturðu in speech and informal writing. Both are correct; geturðu is the everyday form. You’ll see the same with other verbs, e.g., ertu (ert þú), hefurðu (hefur þú), viltu (vilt þú).

Why is it geturðu tengt and not “geturðu tengja”?

With geta (“can/be able to”), Icelandic typically uses the supine (neuter past participle) of the main verb, not the infinitive.

tengja (to connect) → supine: tengt
So: Geturðu tengt…?
Compare: Ég get talað íslensku (“I can speak Icelandic”), where talað is the supine of “tala.” Other modals like vilja (“want to”) take the infinitive: Ég vil tala.

Why does tengt end with a t (not ð)?

Because tengja is a weak -ja verb whose supine ends in -t:

tengja → tengdi → tengt
Similar patterns:
eyða → eyddi → eytt
spyrja → spurði → spurt

What case is símann and why?

Accusative. The verb tengja takes a direct object in the accusative: you’re “connecting my phone.” Hence símann (acc. sg.) rather than nominative síminn.

Why does it say símann minn and not something like síminn minn or sími minn?

The case must be accusative because of tengja, so the definite “the phone” becomes símann (acc. sg. def.).
When a possessive pronoun follows the noun, Icelandic typically adds the definite suffix to the noun: símann minn (“my phone”).
síminn minn would be nominative, so not right here.
sími minn (without the definite suffix) is possible but is less neutral/common in everyday speech when the possessive follows; it can sound a bit more marked or stylistic.

Why is there a double n in símann?

It’s from attaching the definite article -inn to sími and then inflecting for accusative:

sími + inn → síminn (nom. def.)
accusative of that definite form → símann
The double n reflects the definite suffix in the inflected form.

Why is it við hleðslutækið and not í hleðslutækið?

With tengja, Icelandic uses the preposition við to mean “connect to.”

tengja e-ð við e-ð = connect something to something.
Using í (“into”) would sound more like physically putting something inside a container. Alternatives for “plug in” exist, but with tengja the idiomatic preposition is við.

Does við always take the accusative?

Yes. við governs the accusative, so hleðslutækið is accusative singular neuter (and definite here).

Why is hleðslutækið definite?

You’re presumably referring to a specific, visible charger both people know about (e.g., “the charger right here”). Icelandic often uses the definite form in such shared-context situations. Indefinite hleðslutæki would sound like “a charger (some charger or other),” which is less natural here.

What determines the word order in the question?

In yes–no questions, the finite verb goes first: Getur‑ðu…?
A neutral statement would be: Þú getur tengt símann minn við hleðslutækið.

How could I make this even more polite or softer?

Use the conditional: Gætirðu tengt símann minn við hleðslutækið? (“Could you…”)
Add a polite adverb: Gætirðu vinsamlegast tengt…?
Or: Væri mögulegt að tengja símann minn við hleðslutækið? (impersonal, very polite/formal)

Are there other natural ways to say “plug my phone in” in Icelandic?

Yes, common alternatives include:

Seturðu símann minn í hleðslu? (“Put my phone on charge?”)
Gætirðu sett símann minn í hleðslu? (politer)
Stingirðu símanum í samband? (colloquial “plug the phone into power,” note dative símanum with stinga e-u í…)
You might also hear the loan verb plögga in informal speech: Plöggarðu símanum í samband? (very casual).