Learn Hardcore Icelandic: Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?

Hvað – what
þýðir – means (3rd person singular present of að þýða “to mean / to translate”)
þetta – this (neuter demonstrative pronoun)
orð – word (neuter noun)
á – on / in (here: in a language)
íslensku – Icelandic (literally “in Icelandic [language]”, dative form)

So the structure is very close to English: What means this word in Icelandic?, which in good English is What does this word mean in Icelandic?

Why is it á íslensku and not í íslensku for “in Icelandic”?

Icelandic has two common prepositions that can both translate as in:

í – usually “in, inside”
á – usually “on, at”, but also used with languages

When talking about languages, Icelandic idiomatically uses á + [language in dative]:

á íslensku – in Icelandic
á ensku – in English
á frönsku – in French

So:

Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?
What does this word mean in Icelandic?

Using í íslensku would sound unidiomatic here, because the set phrase for “in a language” is á + language (dative), not í.

How is the word order decided in this sentence? Where is the subject?

Icelandic main clauses are verb‑second (V2), similar to German.

Breakdown:

Hvað – question word (what) is put first.
þýðir – the finite verb comes second.
þetta orð – the subject (“this word”) comes after the verb.
á íslensku – prepositional phrase (“in Icelandic”).

So the logical structure is:

Subject: þetta orð – this word
Verb: þýðir – means
Complement: á íslensku – in Icelandic

You could think of it as:

Neutral statement order: Þetta orð þýðir X á íslensku. – This word means X in Icelandic.
Question order: bring Hvað to the front, keep the verb second:
Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?

Why isn’t there a word like “does” as in English “What does this word mean?”?

English uses do‑support in many questions:

What does this word mean?

Icelandic does not use a separate auxiliary like do for this purpose. Instead:

You simply put the finite verb (þýðir) in second position after the question word:
- Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?

So:

English: What does this word mean?
Icelandic: What means this word? (literal order) → Hvað þýðir þetta orð?

No extra helper verb is needed; the tense and person are all in þýðir itself.

What exactly is þýðir, and what is its base form?

þýðir is a verb form:

Infinitive (dictionary form): að þýða – to mean / to translate
3rd person singular present indicative: þýðir – (he/she/it) means / translates

In this sentence, the subject is þetta orð (“this word”), which is grammatically 3rd person singular, so we use þýðir:

þetta orð þýðir – this word means

Note: að þýða can mean both to mean and to translate. In contexts like this question, it’s understood as “to mean”.

Why is it þetta orð and not, for example, þessi orð?

Two things are going on: gender and number.

orð (word) is neuter singular in Icelandic.
The demonstrative this has different forms depending on gender and number:
- þessi – masculine & feminine singular nominative, also all genders plural
- þetta – neuter singular nominative/accusative
- þessi / þessi / þessi – other cases and numbers

Because orð is neuter singular, we must use þetta:

þetta orð – this word

þessi orð would mean “these words” (plural), since orð is also the plural form of “word” (it has the same form for singular and plural in nominative).

Why is there no word for “the” before orð? Shouldn’t it be “this the word” or something?

Icelandic handles definiteness differently:

Instead of a separate the, it usually attaches a definite ending to the noun:
- orðið – the word
- borðið – the table

Here we have þetta orð:

þetta already makes it specific (“this”).
Using a definite ending as well (þetta orðið) is generally not used in this context and would sound wrong here.

So:

þetta orð – this word (no article needed)
orðið – the word

You typically don’t combine þetta + a definite noun ending in simple phrases like this.

Why is it íslensku and not íslenska at the end?

The difference is case and function:

íslenska – nominative singular feminine of the adjective íslenskur; also used as a noun meaning “Icelandic (language)” or “Icelandic woman” in nominative.
íslensku – dative singular feminine form of the same word.

In á íslensku, two things happen:

á in the sense “in (a language)” takes the dative case.
íslenska/íslensku is being used as a noun meaning “Icelandic (language)”.

So the preposition forces dative:

á íslensku – literally “on/in Icelandic (language) [dative]”

That’s why you see íslensku, not íslenska, in this phrase.

How do you pronounce the unusual letters like ð and þ in this sentence?

Approximate pronunciation (in rough English terms):

Hvað – roughly “kvath”
- hv is usually pronounced like kv.
- ð is a voiced “th” sound, like th in this.
þýðir – roughly “THI‑thir”
- þ is a voiceless “th”, like th in thing.
- ý is a long ee sound.
- Final ð again like th in this, but often quite soft.
þetta – roughly “THET‑ta”
- Short e as in bed.
- Double tt is a tense /t/ sound with a small glottal stop feel.
orð – roughly “orth” (with a trilled or tapped r and ð like th in this).
á – a diphthong, similar to ow in cow.
íslensku – roughly “EES‑lens‑kʏ”
- í = long ee.
- sl can feel like stl to some ears.
- Final u is a short, rounded sound, not like English “oo”.

So the whole sentence might sound approximately like:

KVAHD THEE‑thir THET‑ta ORTH ow EES‑lens‑kʏ

(That’s a very rough guide; a phonetic transcription would be something like [kʰvað ˈθiːðɪr ˈθɛhta ɔrð au ˈistlɛnskʏ].)

Could I also say Hvað þýðir þetta? without orð and á íslensku?

Yes, and that’s very common.

Hvað þýðir þetta? – What does this mean?

Differences:

Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?
- Explicitly refers to “this word” and specifies the language “in Icelandic”.
Hvað þýðir þetta?
- More general: “What does this mean?”
- Could refer to a phrase, a gesture, a symbol, a situation, etc., depending on context.

If it’s already clear from context that you’re talking about a written word and asking about Icelandic, the shorter Hvað þýðir þetta? will often be enough.

What’s the difference between asking Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku? and Hvað heitir þetta á íslensku??

These two sentences focus on different things:

Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?
- Literal: What does this word mean in Icelandic?
- You’re asking about the meaning of a word (usually in some other language) expressed in Icelandic.
Hvað heitir þetta á íslensku?
- Literal: What is this called in Icelandic?
- You’re asking for the Icelandic word/name for a thing you see or know in some other language.

Examples:

Pointing at the English word “dog” and wanting the Icelandic word:
- Hvað heitir þetta á íslensku? – What is this called in Icelandic? (Answer: hundur.)
Seeing the Icelandic word “hundur” and not knowing what it means:
- Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku? – What does this word mean in Icelandic?
  (More naturally with English as the target: Hvað þýðir þetta orð á ensku? – in English.)

So þýða = mean/translate, heita = be called.

Why is Hvað used here; are there other forms like hver that I should know?

Hvað is the usual word for what in Icelandic, and it’s the form you use in questions like this.

Related forms:

hver – “who / which” (masculine / feminine)
hvað – “what” (neuter)

In practice:

For “what?” questions (about things, meanings, etc.), you use Hvað:
- Hvað þýðir þetta? – What does this mean?
- Hvað heitir þetta? – What is this called?
hver is used more like who or which one:
- Hver ert þú? – Who are you?
- Hver bíður? – Who is waiting?

So in Hvað þýðir þetta orð á íslensku?, Hvað is exactly the right choice for “what”.