Ég bursta tennurnar áður en ég fer að sofa.

I brush my teeth before I go to sleep.

Breakdown of Ég bursta tennurnar áður en ég fer að sofa.

• ég: I
• áður en: before
• bursta: to brush
• tönnin: the tooth
• fara að sofa: to go to sleep

Questions & Answers about Ég bursta tennurnar áður en ég fer að sofa.

Why does the sentence use Ég bursta (present tense)? Isn’t this about a future action “before I go to sleep”?

Icelandic commonly uses the present tense for habits/routines and also for actions that are generally true in a repeated context.
So Ég bursta tennurnar áður en ég fer að sofa is naturally understood as “I brush my teeth before I go to sleep (as a routine)”.
If you wanted to stress “tonight / in the future”, you’d usually add a time word (e.g. í kvöld) rather than switching tense.

Why is it tennurnar and not tennur?

Tennurnar is definite: “the teeth” (specifically your teeth in this context).
tennur is indefinite: “(some) teeth / teeth in general”, which sounds odd for the routine of brushing your own teeth.
So Icelandic typically says bursta tennurnar where English uses my teeth.

Where is the word for my? Why isn’t it tönnurnar mínar?

With body parts and some everyday personal items, Icelandic often uses the definite form without a possessive because it’s obvious whose it is:

• Ég bursta tennurnar. = “I brush my teeth.”

You can add a possessive for emphasis/contrast:

• Ég bursta tennurnar mínar = “I brush my teeth (not someone else’s).”
  But in normal speech it’s usually unnecessary.

What case is tennurnar in, and how do I know?

It’s accusative plural definite because it’s the direct object of bursta (to brush).
Dictionary form: tönn (tooth) → plural tennur → definite tennurnar.
Many verbs like bursta take an object in the accusative.

Why is the word order Ég bursta tennurnar and not something like Ég bursta þær?

Both are possible, but the most neutral is simply verb + object:

• Ég bursta tennurnar.

You could use a pronoun if it’s already clear what you mean:

• Ég bursta þær. = “I brush them.” (context needed)

With body parts, Icelandic often just repeats the noun rather than switching to a pronoun.

Why is ég repeated: … áður en ég fer að sofa? Can I drop the second ég?

In Icelandic, it’s very common (and usually preferred) to state the subject again in the subordinate clause:

• … áður en ég fer að sofa

Dropping it is generally not the normal neutral style in modern Icelandic. Keeping ég makes the clause clear and natural.

How does áður en work грамmatically? Is it a single unit?

Yes—áður en functions like a fixed conjunction meaning “before” introducing a clause:

• áður en + (subject) + verb …

So you treat áður en as the “connector” that starts the subordinate clause:

• … áður en ég fer að sofa.

Why is it fer að sofa instead of just sofa?

fara að + infinitive means “to start/begin to …” or “to go and … (as you’re about to start)”.
So ég fer að sofa is idiomatic for “I go to sleep / I’m going to sleep” (i.e., the act of beginning sleep).
Just ég sef would mean “I am sleeping” (already asleep), not “go to sleep”.

What is the function of að in fer að sofa?

Here að is an infinitive marker (similar to English to in to sleep).
You’ll see it after many verbs that take an infinitive:

• að sofa = “to sleep”
  In fara að sofa, the pattern is fara + að + infinitive.

Why is it fer and not fara?

fara is the infinitive (“to go”). fer is the present tense, 1st/3rd person singular form:

• ég fer = I go
• þú ferð = you go
• hann/hún/það fer = he/she/it goes
  So ég fer að sofa matches the subject ég.

How is bursta conjugated here, and what does it literally mean?

bursta is a verb meaning “to brush” (often with a toothbrush, hairbrush, etc.).
In the sentence it’s present tense, 1st person singular:

• ég bursta = I brush
  Related noun: bursti = “brush”.

Any pronunciation tips for tricky parts like Ég, tennurnar, and áður?

A few common learner points:

• Ég: the g is not a hard English g; it’s softer, and the vowel is like Icelandic é.
• tennurnar: double nn indicates a clear n sound; stress is on the first syllable: TENN-ur-nar.
• áður: starts with á (a long “ow”/“au” type sound); ð is a soft sound (not a hard d).
  Also remember Icelandic stress is almost always on the first syllable of a word.