Gagnrýnin var ekki góð.

Because -in is the suffixed definite article in Icelandic.

• gagnrýni = criticism / critique
• gagnrýnin = the criticism / the critique

Icelandic usually puts the at the end of the noun instead of using a separate word like English does.

So in this sentence, gagnrýnin is a definite noun: the criticism.

Gagnrýni is a feminine noun. That matters because adjectives in Icelandic often have to agree with the noun in:

• gender
• number
• case

Here, góð is describing gagnrýnin, so it appears in the feminine singular nominative form.

That is why you get:

• gagnrýnin — feminine singular
• góð — feminine singular form of góður (good)

Because the adjective must match gagnrýnin.

The adjective góður has different forms:

• góður = masculine
• góð = feminine
• gott = neuter

Since gagnrýnin is feminine singular, the correct form is góð.

So:

• gagnrýnin var ekki góð = correct
• gagnrýnin var ekki góður = incorrect
• gagnrýnin var ekki gott = incorrect

Var is the past tense of vera (to be).

So:

• er = is
• var = was

This sentence is talking in the past, so Icelandic uses var:

• Gagnrýnin er ekki góð. = The criticism is not good.
• Gagnrýnin var ekki góð. = The criticism was not good.

Also, var is singular because the subject gagnrýnin is singular.

In a normal Icelandic main clause, the finite verb typically comes early in the sentence, and ekki usually follows it.

So the pattern here is:

• Gagnrýnin = subject
• var = finite verb
• ekki = not
• góð = adjective complement

That gives:

• Gagnrýnin var ekki góð.

For an English speaker, it can help to think of ekki as usually coming after the conjugated verb, not before the adjective.

It is an adjective, but more specifically it is a predicate adjective.

That means it comes after a linking verb like vera (to be) and describes the subject.

So in:

• Gagnrýnin var ekki góð

góð describes gagnrýnin.

This is similar to English:

• The criticism was not good.

Here, good also functions as a predicate adjective.

It is in the nominative singular.

That is because gagnrýnin is the subject of the sentence, and subjects are normally in the nominative case.

The adjective góð also appears in the corresponding form because predicate adjectives after vera usually agree with the subject.

So the agreement is:

• gagnrýnin — feminine singular nominative
• góð — feminine singular nominative

Yes, but the meaning changes.

• Gagnrýni var ekki góð. = Criticism was not good or A critique was not good, depending on context
• Gagnrýnin var ekki góð. = The criticism was not good

So the version with -in is definite, while the version without it is indefinite or more general.

A rough learner-friendly guide would be:

• gagnrýnin ≈ GAKN-ree-neen
• var ≈ var
• ekki ≈ EH-kih
• góð ≈ goth or gohth with a soft ð

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• ý is like a long ee sound.
• kk in ekki is pronounced differently from English kk; it has a pre-aspirated feel for many speakers.
• ð in góð is not a hard d. It is like the th sound in this, though in actual speech it can be weaker depending on position and speaker.

Yes, this is completely normal.

The basic order here is:

• Subject + Verb + Negation + Complement

So:

• Gagnrýnin = subject
• var = verb
• ekki = negation
• góð = complement

This is a very natural way to say it in Icelandic.