Morgunkaffið hennar er alltaf of heitt í fyrstu.

Because Icelandic often forms compound nouns where English would use two words.

• morgun = morning
• kaffi = coffee
• morgunkaffi = morning coffee
• morgunkaffið = the morning coffee

So morgunkaffið hennar means her morning coffee.

-ið is the definite article attached to the noun. Icelandic usually puts the at the end of the word instead of using a separate word.

So:

• morgunkaffi = morning coffee
• morgunkaffið = the morning coffee

That is why Icelandic does not need a separate word for the here.

This is a very common Icelandic pattern. Possession is often expressed as:

• noun + definite article + possessive

So:

• morgunkaffið hennar = her morning coffee
  literally: the morning coffee of hers

This sounds natural in Icelandic. English usually puts the possessor first, but Icelandic often puts it after the noun.

hennar means her.

In this sentence it shows possession: the coffee belongs to her.

So:

• Morgunkaffið hennar = Her morning coffee

Do not confuse this with English-style word order. Even though hennar comes later, it still means her.

er is the present tense of vera, which means to be.

So:

• er = is

The sentence is describing a state:

• Morgunkaffið hennar er... = Her morning coffee is...

Because heitt agrees with morgunkaffið, and kaffi is a neuter singular noun.

The adjective heitur = hot changes form depending on gender and number:

• masculine: heitur
• feminine: heit
• neuter: heitt

Since morgunkaffið is neuter singular, the correct form is heitt.

No. Icelandic of here does not mean English of.

In this sentence, of means too or overly.

So:

• heitt = hot
• of heitt = too hot

Compare:

• mjög heitt = very hot
• of heitt = too hot

That distinction is important.

Alltaf means always.

It is an adverb modifying the whole statement:

• er alltaf of heitt = is always too hot

So the sentence is not about one single occasion only. It describes something habitual or typical.

That word order is normal in Icelandic main clauses.

Icelandic follows a verb-second pattern quite often, meaning the finite verb tends to come early in the sentence, usually in second position.

So this structure is natural:

• Morgunkaffið hennar er alltaf of heitt í fyrstu.

Here:

1. Morgunkaffið hennar = first element
2. er = finite verb in second position
3. alltaf follows it

This is one reason Icelandic word order may feel different from English.

Í fyrstu is an idiomatic expression meaning:

• at first
• initially
• in the beginning

So the sentence means that the coffee is too hot at first, but probably not forever.

Even though í often means in, you should learn í fyrstu as a set phrase.

Yes. Here it is a time expression, not a place expression.

• í often means in
• but in í fyrstu, the whole phrase means at first / initially

So it answers when?, not where?

It could be, but then the meaning would be stronger and more general: Her morning coffee is too hot.

By adding alltaf and í fyrstu, the sentence becomes more specific:

• alltaf = always
• í fyrstu = at first

So the full meaning is more like:

• It is always too hot at the beginning.

That suggests it may cool down later.

Not necessarily a single specific cup. The definite form can also be used for something habitual or familiar.

Here it likely means her usual morning coffee as a regular thing, not one unique coffee on one single day.

So Icelandic definite forms can sometimes sound more natural in contexts where English might still feel less definite.

A very literal breakdown would be:

• Morgunkaffið = the morning coffee
• hennar = of hers / her
• er = is
• alltaf = always
• of = too
• heitt = hot
• í fyrstu = at first

So a very literal version is:

• The morning coffee of hers is always too hot at first.

Natural English is:

• Her morning coffee is always too hot at first.

A few key Icelandic patterns are packed into this one sentence:

1. Compound noun

   • morgunkaffi = morning coffee

2. Definite article attached to the noun

   • morgunkaffið = the morning coffee

3. Possessive after the noun

   • morgunkaffið hennar = her morning coffee

4. Adjective agreement

   • heitt matches neuter singular kaffið

5. Adverb vs. adjective meaning

   • of heitt = too hot, not very hot

6. Idiomatic time phrase

   • í fyrstu = at first

If you can recognize those features, you understand a lot of the grammar in this sentence.