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Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum, af því að við erum bæði mjög svöng.

Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum, af því að við erum bæði mjög svöng.
I heat the soup in the microwave, because we are both very hungry.

Breakdown of Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum, af því að við erum bæði mjög svöng.

ég
I
vera
to be
við
we
mjög
very
súpan
the soup
í
in
svangur
hungry
af því að
because
bæði
both
hita
to heat
örbylgjuofninn
the microwave
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Questions & Answers about Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum, af því að við erum bæði mjög svöng.

Why is it súpuna and not súpa?

Because súpuna is:

  • Definite (it means the soup). Icelandic usually puts the definite article on the end of the noun: súpa → súpan (nom.), súpuna (acc.).
  • In the accusative case, because it’s the direct object of the verb hita (to heat).

So: Ég hita súpuna = I heat the soup / I’m heating the soup.

How do I know súpuna is accusative (and not some other case)?

Two clues: 1) The verb hita typically takes a direct object in the accusative. 2) The ending -una here matches accusative singular definite for many feminine nouns like súpa.

(For reference: súpan = nominative singular definite; súpuna = accusative singular definite.)

What’s going on with í örbylgjuofninum—why that ending -inum?

The preposition í can take:

  • Accusative for motion/direction (into),
  • Dative for location (in).

Here it’s location (in the microwave), so it takes dative:

  • örbylgjuofn (microwave oven) + definite dative singular → örbylgjuofninum.

So í örbylgjuofninum literally means in the microwave (oven).

Could this sentence also use accusative after í?

Yes, but it would change the meaning:

  • Ég set súpuna í örbylgjuofninn. = I put the soup into the microwave. (movement → accusative)
  • Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum. = I heat the soup in the microwave. (location → dative)

So your sentence is about where the heating happens, not the action of putting it in.

Why is the microwave word so long: örbylgjuofninum?

Icelandic forms lots of compound nouns. This one is basically:

  • örbylgja = microwave (literally micro-wave)
  • ofn = oven → örbylgjuofn = microwave oven

Then it gets the case + definiteness ending: -inum (dative singular definite).

Does Ég hita... mean “I heat” or “I am heating”?

It can mean either, depending on context. Icelandic present tense often covers both:

  • Ég hita súpuna... = I heat the soup / I’m heating the soup.

If you want to emphasize the ongoing action, Icelandic often uses:

  • Ég er að hita súpuna... = I am heating the soup...
Why is there a comma before af því að?

Because af því að introduces a subordinate clause (a “because”-clause). In Icelandic, it’s normal to separate that clause with a comma:

  • Main clause: Ég hita súpuna í örbylgjuofninum,
  • Subordinate clause: af því að við erum bæði mjög svöng.
What exactly does af því að mean, and are there alternatives?

af því að means because.

Common alternatives include:

  • því að = also because (often a bit shorter/more neutral)
  • þar sem = since (can sound more like giving a reason/explanation)

All of them typically introduce a subordinate clause with non-V2 word order (see next question).

Why is the word order við erum (subject before verb) after af því að?

In main clauses, Icelandic often has verb-second (V2) word order. But in subordinate clauses (like after af því að), Icelandic normally uses subject–verb order:

  • Main clause style (V2 possible): Við erum mjög svöng.
  • Subordinate clause: ...af því að við erum mjög svöng. (subject við before verb erum)

So the sentence is following standard subordinate clause word order.

Why does it say við erum bæði—what does bæði do here?

bæði means both. Placed like this, it emphasizes that both people included in við are hungry:

  • við erum bæði mjög svöng = we are both very hungry

You’ll also see slightly different placements, depending on emphasis, for example:

  • Við erum bæði svöng.
  • Bæði erum við svöng. (more marked/emphatic)
Why is it svöng and not something like svangir or svangar?

With við (we) and þið (you plural), Icelandic very commonly uses the neuter plural form of predicate adjectives as a kind of default:

  • Við erum svöng. = We are hungry.
  • Þið eruð þreytt. = You (pl.) are tired.

You can also match grammatical gender more explicitly in some contexts (especially if the group is clearly all male/female), but svöng is the most common, natural choice for “we are hungry.”

Why is mjög placed before svöng?

mjög is an adverb meaning very, and it normally goes directly before the adjective (or adverb) it modifies:

  • mjög svöng = very hungry
  • mjög heitt = very hot

So the placement here is the default, neutral one.