Hún þurrkaði nefið með vasaklút og fann svo varasalvann í töskunni.

Because Icelandic nouns change form for both case and definiteness.

In this sentence:

• nefið = nef

  • definite ending
  • noun: nef = nose
  • form here: accusative singular definite
  • it is the direct object of þurrkaði

• vasaklút

  • dictionary form: vasaklútur = handkerchief
  • form here: dative singular
  • með normally takes the dative

• varasalvann

  • dictionary form: varasalvi = lip balm / lip salve
  • form here: accusative singular definite
  • it is the direct object of fann

• töskunni

  • dictionary form: taska = bag
  • form here: dative singular definite
  • í takes the dative here because it means location: in the bag

So the endings are not random; they show the noun’s job in the sentence.

Icelandic normally has no indefinite article. English says a handkerchief, but Icelandic usually just says vasaklút.

So:

• með vasaklút = with a handkerchief

If you really want to emphasize one or some particular handkerchief, Icelandic can use words like:

• einn = one
• einhver = some

But in ordinary sentences, the bare noun is enough.

Because í can take two different cases depending on meaning:

• dative for location: being in something
• accusative for motion into something

Here the meaning is location:

• í töskunni = in the bag

If the sentence were about putting something into the bag, you would expect the accusative:

• hún setti varasalvann í töskuna = she put the lip balm into the bag

This is a very common Icelandic pattern.

Here svo means then, after that, or and then.

So:

• fann svo varasalvann = then found the lip balm

It is a very common narrative word in Icelandic when actions happen one after another.

In other contexts, svo can also mean things like so, therefore, or as depending on the sentence, but here it is simply sequencing the events.

Because finna is a strong verb, so its past tense is irregular and must be learned as part of the verb.

Important forms are:

• finna = to find
• finnur = finds
• fann = found
• fundið = found (past participle)

So fann is just the normal past tense form of finna.

It can mean either, depending on context.

The verb þurrka basically has the idea of drying or wiping dry, but with body parts or surfaces it is often best translated as wipe in natural English.

So in this sentence:

• Hún þurrkaði nefið
  is most naturally
• She wiped her nose

A more literal sense of dry is still present in the Icelandic verb, but wiped is the idiomatic English choice here.

It is a compound noun, which is extremely common in Icelandic.

• vara- = lip
• salvi = salve / balm

So varasalvi literally means something like lip-salve, i.e. lip balm.

Then in the sentence it becomes varasalvann because it is:

• singular
• definite
• accusative

A useful thing to notice is that in Icelandic compounds, the last part is the part that usually gets inflected.

Because the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence, and Icelandic can leave it out in a coordinated structure like this.

So:

• Hún þurrkaði nefið með vasaklút og fann svo varasalvann í töskunni.

means that the understood subject of fann is still hún.

English does the same thing:

• She wiped her nose and then found the lip balm in the bag.

You could repeat hún, but it is not necessary here.

Literally it means in the bag.

However, in context it may naturally be understood as in her bag if that is obvious from the situation.

Icelandic often does not state possession as often as English does when the owner is clear from context.

If you wanted to say it explicitly, you could say:

• í töskunni hennar = in her bag

So the sentence as given does not literally say her, but that meaning may still be implied.

These two letters are very important in Icelandic:

• þ is like th in think
• ð is like th in this

From this sentence:

• þurrkaði begins with þ
• nefið contains ð

A rough guide:

• þurrkaði ≈ THUR-ka-thi
• nefið ≈ NEH-vith

That said, Icelandic pronunciation is not exactly the same as English, so these are only approximations. But the basic rule þ = think and ð = this will help a lot.

Because in Icelandic, the definite article is usually a suffix, not a separate word like English the.

So instead of saying:

• the nose
• the lip balm
• the bag

Icelandic usually says:

• nefið
• varasalvann
• töskunni

This is one of the first big differences English speakers notice. Icelandic can use a separate article in some special styles or constructions, but in everyday sentences the attached article is the normal pattern.