Kennarinn biður okkur að finna rétta orðmynd í upptökunni og skrifa hana niður.

Kennarinn means the teacher. Icelandic usually adds the definite article to the end of the noun instead of putting a separate word in front of it.

• kennari = teacher
• kennarinn = the teacher

So the ending -inn is the definite article.

Biður is the 3rd person singular present tense of the verb biðja = to ask / to request.

So:

• ég bið = I ask
• þú biður = you ask
• hann/hún biður = he/she asks

Since the subject is Kennarinn (the teacher), Icelandic uses biður: The teacher asks.

Here okkur means us.

In the pattern biðja einhvern að gera eitthvað = to ask someone to do something, the person being asked is in the accusative.

So:

• Kennarinn biður okkur ... = The teacher asks us ...

A useful detail: okkur has the same form in both the accusative and dative, so you cannot tell the case just from the shape alone. The verb pattern tells you that it is accusative here.

After biðja in this meaning, Icelandic normally uses the pattern:

biðja + person + að + infinitive

So:

• biðja okkur að finna = ask us to find

Here að is introducing the infinitive phrase, similar to English to in ask us to find.

It is a very common Icelandic structure:

• biðja = ask
• einhvern = someone
• að gera eitthvað = to do something

So the sentence structure is:

• Kennarinn = subject
• biður okkur = asks us
• að finna ... og skrifa ... = to find ... and write ...

This is one of the most useful verb patterns to learn as a chunk: biðja einhvern að + infinitive.

Because rétta has to agree with orðmynd in gender, number, and case.

Here:

• orðmynd is a feminine singular noun
• it is the object of finna, so it is in the accusative
• the adjective réttur = correct / right changes form to match

That gives:

• rétta orðmynd

So rétta is the adjective form that matches orðmynd here.

Because Icelandic article use does not always match English word-for-word.

English may naturally say the correct word form, but Icelandic can use rétta orðmynd in context without putting the definite article directly on the noun. The context makes it clear which word form is meant.

So even if the English translation uses the, Icelandic does not always have to show definiteness in exactly the same way.

This means in the recording.

Breakdown:

• upptaka = recording
• upptökunni = in the recording / the recording (dative singular definite)

The preposition í can take different cases:

• accusative when there is motion into
• dative when there is location in

Here the meaning is location, not movement:

• í upptökunni = in the recording

So the dative is used.

Because finna and skrifa are two coordinated infinitives after the same að.

So:

• að finna ... og skrifa ...

works like English:

• to find ... and write ...

You could think of the að as applying to both verbs. Icelandic often does not repeat it when the two infinitives are linked by og.

Hana refers back to orðmynd.

Since orðmynd is a feminine singular noun, the pronoun must also be feminine singular:

• orðmynd = feminine
• hana = her/it (accusative feminine singular)

So:

• skrifa hana niður = write it down

In English we say it, but Icelandic pronouns reflect grammatical gender, so the form is feminine here.

Skrifa niður is a common verb-particle combination meaning write down.

Literally:

• skrifa = write
• niður = down

So:

• skrifa hana niður = write it down

The particle niður often comes after the object, especially when the object is a pronoun like hana. That is why you see:

• skrifa hana niður

rather than putting niður directly after the verb.