Við reddum þessu saman, jafnvel þótt tíminn sé stuttur.

Reddum comes from the verb redda, which is a very common, somewhat informal Icelandic verb meaning things like:

• fix
• sort out
• manage
• take care of

In this sentence, Við reddum þessu saman means something like We’ll sort this out together or We’ll manage this together.

It is a very natural everyday word, especially in speech.

Við means we, and reddum is the 1st person plural form of redda in the present tense.

So:

• ég redda = I fix/manage
• þú reddar = you fix/manage
• við reddum = we fix/manage

Even though English often uses will here, Icelandic very often uses the present tense for a near-future meaning. So Við reddum þessu can naturally mean We’ll manage this.

This is a very common learner question. The short answer is: redda often takes the dative case for the thing being dealt with.

So the pronoun is not in the nominative form þetta, but in the dative form þessu.

For þetta (this), the forms are:

• nominative: þetta
• accusative: þetta
• dative: þessu
• genitive: þessa

So redda þessu means manage this / sort this out.

This is one of those things you usually just learn together with the verb: redda + dative.

Not especially. Redda is very common and natural, but it has a slightly everyday, conversational feel.

It is not slang in the sense of being rare or nonstandard, but it is less neutral than some more formal alternatives. In many real-life situations, though, Icelanders would absolutely say Við reddum þessu.

So for a learner, it is a very useful verb to know.

Saman means together.

So:

• Við reddum þessu = We’ll manage this
• Við reddum þessu saman = We’ll manage this together

Its position is very natural here, coming after the object þessu.

Jafnvel þótt means even though, even if, or although depending on context.

In this sentence, it works like even though:

• jafnvel þótt tíminn sé stuttur = even though the time is short

You can think of it as introducing a clause that gives a difficulty or obstacle, while the main statement still stands.

Because þótt often triggers the subjunctive.

The verb vera (to be) has:

• indicative present: er
• subjunctive present: sé

So:

• tíminn er stuttur = the time is short
• jafnvel þótt tíminn sé stuttur = even though the time is short

For learners, the key point is that after words like þótt, Icelandic often uses the subjunctive, especially in this kind of concessive clause.

Sé is the present subjunctive, 3rd person singular, of vera (to be).

Here it agrees with tíminn (the time), which is singular.

So:

• ég sé can also mean I see from the verb sjá, so context matters
• but here sé is clearly from vera, because it follows tíminn

In this sentence, it means be in a subjunctive sense after jafnvel þótt.

Tíminn means the time. The -nn at the end is the suffixed definite article.

So:

• tími = time
• tíminn = the time

Icelandic usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun rather than using a separate word like English the.

Here tíminn is the subject of the subordinate clause: the time is short.

Because adjectives in Icelandic agree with the noun they describe.

Tíminn is:

• masculine
• singular
• nominative

So the adjective must match that:

• stuttur = masculine singular nominative
• stutt would be neuter singular nominative/accusative

Since tími is a masculine noun, stuttur is the correct form.

The sentence has two parts:

1. Við reddum þessu saman

   • Við = we
   • reddum = manage/fix
   • þessu = this (dative)
   • saman = together

2. jafnvel þótt tíminn sé stuttur

   • jafnvel þótt = even though
   • tíminn = the time
   • sé = be (subjunctive)
   • stuttur = short

So the full structure is:

Main clause + concessive subordinate clause

That is very similar to English: We’ll manage this together, even though the time is short.

Yes, depending on context.

In many sentences, jafnvel þótt can be translated as either:

• even though if the condition is real or accepted as true
• even if if it is more hypothetical

In your sentence, the most natural English translation is probably even though the time is short, because it sounds like a real situation, not just a possibility.

Yes. Icelandic also often uses expressions like:

• þótt
• þó að

For example:

• Við reddum þessu saman, þótt tíminn sé stuttur.
• Við reddum þessu saman, þó að tíminn sé stuttur.

These are very close in meaning. Jafnvel þótt adds a stronger sense of even though / even if.

A rough learner-friendly pronunciation guide could be:

Vith RED-dum THESS-u SA-man, YAKN-vel thoht TEE-minn sye STYT-tur

A few important sounds:

• ð in við and það/þessu-type words is usually like a soft th in this
• þ is like th in thing
• é in sé is pronounced like ye in many learner approximations
• í is like ee

This is only approximate, but it helps get you started.

Yes, very natural.

Especially the first part, Við reddum þessu saman, sounds very everyday and encouraging. It is the kind of thing someone might say when reassuring another person.

The whole sentence feels supportive and conversational: We’ll sort this out together, even though time is short.