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Við horfum á stutt myndband um íslensku og endurtökum setningarnar saman.

Við horfum á stutt myndband um íslensku og endurtökum setningarnar saman.
We watch a short video about Icelandic and repeat the sentences together.
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Questions & Answers about Við horfum á stutt myndband um íslensku og endurtökum setningarnar saman.

Why is it Við and not Ég/Þú etc.? What person/number is this sentence in?
Við means we (1st person plural). The whole sentence is in 1st person plural, which you can also see from the verb endings: horf-um and endurtök-um both end in -um, a common present-tense ending for we in Icelandic.
What tense is horfum / endurtökum? Does it mean “we are watching” or “we watch”?
Both horfum (from horfa, “to watch/look”) and endurtökum (from endurtaka, “to repeat”) are present tense. Icelandic present tense often covers both English simple present and present continuous, so it can mean we watch or we are watching, depending on context.
Why do we use á after horfum? What does horfa á mean?

The verb horfa commonly goes with the preposition á to mean to watch / look at something:

  • horfa á myndband = watch a video
    So Við horfum á stutt myndband literally matches “We watch/look at a short video.”
What case does á require here, and how can I tell?
In horfa á + [object], á takes the accusative. Here the object is stutt myndband. For many neuter nouns like myndband, the nominative and accusative singular look the same (myndband), so you don’t “see” a change on the noun—yet it’s still accusative in grammar.
Why is it stutt myndband and not stutta myndband?

Because the noun phrase is indefinite (a short video, not the short video) and the adjective is in the strong form.

  • stutt myndband = strong adjective + indefinite noun
    If it were definite (“the short video”), you’d typically use the weak form:
  • stutta myndbandið = “the short video”
How do we know stutt is the right form? What gender is myndband?

Myndband is neuter (hvorugkyn) singular. The adjective stuttur/stutt/stutt must agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.
Here it’s neuter singular (accusative), so stutt is the correct agreeing form.

What does um do in um íslensku? Why that preposition?
um means about. So myndband um íslensku is a video about Icelandic. It’s a very common pairing: [something] um [topic].
Why is it íslensku and not íslenska?

Because um normally takes the accusative, and the word íslenska (“Icelandic (language)”) changes form by case:

  • Nominative: íslenska
  • Accusative (and also dative in this word): íslensku
    So um íslensku = “about Icelandic.”
Why does Icelandic say endurtökum setningarnar—what is -arnar?

setningarnar means the sentences. The -arnar is the definite article suffix attached to the noun (instead of a separate word like “the”).

  • setningar = sentences (indefinite)
  • setningarnar = the sentences (definite)
What case is setningarnar here, and why?
It’s the direct object of endurtökum (“we repeat”), so it’s in the accusative plural. For setning (a feminine noun), accusative plural definite is setningarnar.
Why isn’t Við repeated before the second verb? Should it be Við horfum … og við endurtökum …?

In Icelandic (as in English), you can coordinate two verbs with og and keep the subject only once when it’s the same subject:

  • Við horfum … og endurtökum … = natural and common
    Repeating við is possible, but it adds emphasis or can sound more deliberate:
  • Við horfum … og við endurtökum … = “We watch … and we (specifically) repeat …”
What does saman mean here, and why is it at the end?
saman means together. Placing it at the end is very normal for adverbs in Icelandic, especially when it describes the whole action: we repeat the sentences together.
How should I pronounce some tricky parts: Við, íslensku, and endurtökum?

A few helpful pronunciation notes (approximate guidance):

  • Við: the ð is usually a soft “th” sound (like in this), but in fast speech it can be very light.
  • íslensku: stress is on the first syllable: ÍS-len-sku (Icelandic almost always stresses the first syllable).
  • endurtökum: also first-syllable stress: EN-dur-tö-kum; ö is like a rounded vowel (similar to German ö, if you know it).