Þetta var erfið ákvörðun, en nú er ég viss um hana.

This was a difficult decision, but now I am sure about it.

Breakdown of Þetta var erfið ákvörðun, en nú er ég viss um hana.

• ég: I
• vera: to be
• þetta: this
• en: but

Questions & Answers about Þetta var erfið ákvörðun, en nú er ég viss um hana.

Why does the sentence start with þetta instead of þessi?

Þetta is the neuter form of this, and Icelandic often uses it the same way English uses this to refer to a whole situation or statement:

• Þetta var erfið ákvörðun = This was a difficult decision

Here, þetta does not directly modify ákvörðun. It points to the situation as a whole.

If you wanted to say this decision, you would use:

• þessi ákvörðun

So compare:

• Þetta var erfið ákvörðun = This was a difficult decision
• Þessi ákvörðun var erfið = This decision was difficult

Why is it erfið ákvörðun?

Because ákvörðun is a feminine singular noun in the nominative, and the adjective has to agree with it.

• ákvörðun = decision
• gender: feminine
• number: singular
• case here: nominative (because it is the predicate noun phrase after var)

So the adjective erfiður (difficult) appears in the feminine nominative singular form:

• masculine: erfiður
• feminine: erfið
• neuter: erfitt

That is why you get:

• erfið ákvörðun

What case is ákvörðun in here?