Ilmurinn er góður og ekki of sterkur.

The scent is good and not too strong.

Breakdown of Ilmurinn er góður og ekki of sterkur.

• vera: to be
• góður: good
• ekki: not
• og: and
• sterkur: strong
• of: too
• ilmurinn: the scent

Questions & Answers about Ilmurinn er góður og ekki of sterkur.

Why does ilmur appear as ilmurinn?

-inn is the suffixed definite article in Icelandic. So:

• ilmur = a smell / scent (indefinite)
• ilmurinn = the smell / the scent (definite)

The -inn ending also changes a bit depending on gender and case; here it’s masculine nominative singular.

What gender is ilmur, and how can I tell?

Ilmur is masculine. In this sentence you can see it from the adjective forms:

• góður (masculine nominative singular)
• sterkur (masculine nominative singular)

Those endings -ur are strong clues you’re dealing with a masculine nominative singular noun phrase.

Why are the adjectives góður and sterkur ending in -ur?

Because Icelandic adjectives agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.
Here, ilmurinn is:

• masculine
• singular
• nominative (it’s the subject)

So the adjectives show masculine nominative singular forms:

• góður (not góð, gott, etc.)
• sterkur (not sterk, sterkt, etc.)

Why does the adjective not use the “definite” adjective form (like góði) even though the noun is definite (ilmurinn)?

In Icelandic, whether the adjective is “weak/definite” (e.g., góði) often depends on the whole noun phrase structure, especially whether there is a separate determiner like hinn, a demonstrative, or other “definiteness markers.”

With a suffixed definite article alone, you’ll very often still see the strong adjective, especially in straightforward copula sentences like this:

• Ilmurinn er góður. = The smell is good.

You can encounter weak forms in other definite contexts (for example with þessi this), but this sentence’s pattern is very common and natural.

What is the role of er here?

Er is the present tense of að vera (to be). It links the subject ilmurinn to the descriptions góður and ekki of sterkur. It works like English is.

Why is ekki placed before of sterkur?

Ekki is the basic negation word (not). In this structure it negates the adjective phrase:

• ekki of sterkur = not too strong

So the sentence is essentially: [is] [good] and [not too strong].

What exactly does of mean, and how is it used?

Of means too / overly / excessively. It typically goes right before an adjective or adverb:

• of sterkur = too strong
• of kalt = too cold
• of hratt = too fast

So ekki of sterkur is a very common, idiomatic way to say not too strong.

Why isn’t it written as og of ekki sterkur or something closer to English word order?

Icelandic places ekki directly before what it negates in many common patterns. Here you’re negating the phrase of sterkur, so ekki comes first: ekki of sterkur.

Also, Icelandic doesn’t try to mirror English ordering; it uses its own standard negation patterns.

Could I drop of and just say ekki sterkur?

Yes, but it changes the meaning:

• ekki sterkur = not strong (stronger negation)
• ekki of sterkur = not too strong (milder; implies it may be somewhat strong but not excessively)

So of is important if you want the “not too …” nuance.

Why is there no word corresponding to English it?

Icelandic commonly uses the noun itself as the subject instead of a dummy pronoun:

• Ilmurinn er góður. (literally The smell is good.)

You can use það (it/that) in some contexts, but it’s not required here and would usually shift the emphasis or structure.

How is Ilmurinn er góður pronounced (roughly)?

A rough guide (accent varies by speaker):

• Ilmurinn ≈ IL-mur-in (with a rolled/tapped r; nn is long)
• er ≈ er (short vowel)
• góður ≈ GOH-thur (the ð is a voiced “th” like in this)

Key tip: Icelandic r is not the English R, and ð is usually like the th in this.

Is the comma optional? Why isn’t there one before og?

In Icelandic, you normally don’t put a comma before og when it simply links two items (here, two predicate descriptions):

• góður og ekki of sterkur

A comma could appear in other situations (like longer inserted clauses), but for this simple coordination, no comma is standard.