Höfuðverkurinn minnkar þegar ég sef betur.

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Breakdown of Höfuðverkurinn minnkar þegar ég sef betur.

• sofa: to sleep
• þegar: when
• betur: better

Questions & Answers about Höfuðverkurinn minnkar þegar ég sef betur.

Why is höfuðverkurinn written as one long word?

Because Icelandic very often makes compound nouns by joining smaller words together.

Here:

• höfuð = head
• verkur = pain, ache

So:

• höfuðverkur = headache

Then Icelandic adds the definite article to the end:

• höfuðverkur = a headache / headache
• höfuðverkurinn = the headache

This kind of long compound is extremely normal in Icelandic.

What does the ending -inn in höfuðverkurinn mean?

The ending -inn is the definite article, meaning the.

So:

• höfuðverkur = headache / a headache
• höfuðverkurinn = the headache

Unlike English, Icelandic usually puts the at the end of the noun instead of using a separate word before it.

Why is it minnkar? What form is that?