Hún segir að hann ætti að raka skeggið betur ef þau ætla á veitingastaðinn.

They do two different jobs:

• The first að in Hún segir að... is a conjunction meaning that.
• The second að in ætti að raka is the infinitive marker, like to in should to shave—except in natural English we just say should shave.

So:

• segir að hann ætti... = says that he should...
• ætti að raka... = should shave...

Ætti is from the verb eiga, which often means to own, but in the expression eiga að + infinitive it means something like be supposed to / should / ought to.

Here, ætti is the past subjunctive form, and Icelandic very often uses this form to express advice, suggestion, or something less direct:

• hann ætti að raka skeggið = he should shave his beard

So even though eiga normally gives forms like á, this sentence uses ætti because it expresses a recommendation rather than a plain statement.

This is very common in Icelandic. The past subjunctive often softens a statement and makes it sound like advice, possibility, or polite recommendation rather than a blunt fact.

So:

• hann á að raka skeggið can sound more like he is supposed to shave his beard
• hann ætti að raka skeggið sounds more like he should shave his beard

Even though ætti looks past, the meaning here is not really past. It is modal: advice, obligation, or expectation.

It literally means shave the beard.

• raka = to shave
• skeggið = the beard

In Icelandic, the definite article is usually attached to the noun as an ending, so skegg is beard, while skeggið is the beard.

Depending on context, English might translate this more naturally as:

• shave his beard
• trim his beard
• groom his beard better

But grammatically, Icelandic literally says shave the beard.

The noun is skegg (beard), a neuter noun. When the definite article is added, sound changes can happen, and the correct form is:

• skegg = beard
• skeggið = the beard

So the spelling is not just the noun plus a simple extra ending in a completely mechanical way; Icelandic inflection often changes the shape slightly.

Betur is the comparative adverb of vel (well), so it means better.

Here it modifies the verb raka:

• raka skeggið betur = shave the beard better

In more natural English, that might mean:

• shave more neatly
• do a better job shaving
• groom his beard better

So betur describes how he should do the shaving.

Þau is the neuter plural form of they. Icelandic often uses neuter plural for a mixed group or for the two of them when referring to a male and a female together.

So if she and he are the people going to the restaurant, þau is exactly what you would expect.

Compare:

• þeir = they, masculine plural
• þær = they, feminine plural
• þau = they, neuter plural, often for mixed groups

This is one of the big differences from English, which just uses they for all groups.

Icelandic often uses the present tense to talk about the future when the future meaning is clear from context.

So:

• ef þau ætla á veitingastaðinn literally looks like if they intend/go to the restaurant
• but naturally it means if they are going to the restaurant

The verb ætla often means intend / plan / be going to.

So this clause is a normal way to talk about a future plan.

Here ætla means intend, plan, or be going to.

So:

• þau ætla á veitingastaðinn = they are going to the restaurant / they plan to go to the restaurant

A very common Icelandic pattern is:

• ætla að + infinitive = intend to do something
• ætla á + place = be going to a place

In this sentence, it is the second pattern: motion toward a destination.

This is about prepositions and case.

With motion toward a destination, Icelandic often uses:

• á + accusative for onto / to / into certain places or institutions

So:

• á veitingastaðinn = to the restaurant

The noun is in the accusative because there is movement or intended movement toward the place.

By contrast, if you were talking about being located there, you would often use a different case:

• á veitingastaðnum = at the restaurant

So a useful contrast is:

• fara á veitingastaðinn = go to the restaurant
• vera á veitingastaðnum = be at the restaurant

Because the sentence refers to the restaurant, not just a restaurant.

• veitingastaður = restaurant
• veitingastaðinn = the restaurant (accusative singular with the suffixed definite article)

The ending changes because of both:

1. case: accusative
2. definiteness: the

So the form is not just a dictionary form plus the; it is an inflected form.

Because Icelandic main clauses and subordinate clauses behave differently.

In a main clause, Icelandic is usually verb-second:

• Hún segir...

But after subordinating words like að (that) and ef (if), the clause is subordinate, and the word order is more like:

• conjunction + subject + verb

So:

• að hann ætti...
• ef þau ætla...

That is normal Icelandic subordinate clause word order.

No. This is indirect speech, or reported speech.

• Hún segir: Hann ætti að raka skeggið betur. = direct speech
• Hún segir að hann ætti að raka skeggið betur. = indirect speech

The conjunction að introduces what she says. English works similarly with that.

Yes, depending on context, the best English translation may be looser than the literal word better.

• Literally: shave the beard better
• More natural English: shave more carefully, trim it more neatly, do a better job with his beard

So betur is grammatically better, but idiomatically it can suggest improved grooming rather than simple comparison.

Icelandic often does not use possessives in places where English does, especially with body parts, clothing, or things obviously belonging to the person involved.

So:

• hann ætti að raka skeggið literally = he should shave the beard
• natural English = he should shave his beard

Because the beard obviously belongs to him, Icelandic does not need to say his explicitly.

It is in the accusative, because it is the direct object of raka.

• raka is a transitive verb: you shave something
• the thing being shaved takes the accusative

So:

• raka skeggið = shave the beard

This is a very common pattern in Icelandic: verbs that act directly on an object often take the accusative.

A stronger version could use á að instead of ætti að:

• Hún segir að hann á að raka skeggið betur...

That sounds more like:

• She says that he is supposed to shave his beard better...

But ætti að is softer and more natural for advice:

• he should...
• he ought to...

So the original sentence sounds like a recommendation, not a strict command.