Þetta epli er súrt, en kaffið er ekki eins beiskt og ég hélt.

This apple is sour, but the coffee is not as bitter as I thought.

Breakdown of Þetta epli er súrt, en kaffið er ekki eins beiskt og ég hélt.

• ég: I
• vera: to be
• ekki: not
• þessi: this

Questions & Answers about Þetta epli er súrt, en kaffið er ekki eins beiskt og ég hélt.

Why is it þetta epli and not þessi epli?

Because epli is a neuter singular noun here, and the demonstrative this has to agree with the noun in gender, number, and case.

So:

• þetta = nominative/accusative singular neuter
• þessi = nominative singular masculine or feminine

Since epli is neuter, þetta is the correct form.

Is epli singular here? It looks like it could be plural.

Yes, it is singular here: this apple.

A tricky thing for learners is that some Icelandic neuter nouns can have the same form in singular and plural in certain cases. But in this sentence, þetta clearly shows that epli is singular, because þetta is a singular neuter form.

Why isn’t it þetta eplið?

Because Icelandic normally does not use the suffixed definite article when a demonstrative like þetta is already there.

So:

• epli = apple
• eplið = the apple
• þetta epli = this apple

In other words, þetta already does the job of pointing out the noun, so eplið would usually be unnecessary here.