Ég set kennslubók á aðra hilluna.

I put a textbook on the other shelf.

Breakdown of Ég set kennslubók á aðra hilluna.

• ég: I
• setja: to put
• á: on
• annar: other

Questions & Answers about Ég set kennslubók á aðra hilluna.

What does each word in Ég set kennslubók á aðra hilluna correspond to in English?

Very literally, you can line the words up like this:

• Ég – I (subject pronoun, nominative case)
• set – put (present tense, 1st person singular of setja “to put”)
• kennslubók – textbook (literally “teaching‑book”)
• á – on / onto (here: onto, because there is movement)
• aðra – other (feminine accusative singular of annar)
• hilluna – the shelf (accusative singular, with the definite ending ‑na “the”)

So the sentence corresponds to: “I put a textbook onto the other shelf.”

Why is it Ég set and not Ég setja?

Setja is the infinitive form of the verb “to put”.
In the present tense, 1st person singular, it’s conjugated as:

• ég set – I put
• þú setur – you put
• hann / hún / það setur – he / she / it puts
• við setjum – we put
• þið setjið – you (pl.) put
• þeir / þær / þau setja – they put

So ég set is the correct finite verb form for “I put”.
Using ég setja would be like saying “I to put” in English.