Breakdown of Við ætlum að fá þessa bletti hreinsaða.
við
we
að
to (infinitive marker)
ætla
to intend
fá
to get
þessi
this (m/f)
hreinsa
to clean (cleanse, purify)
bletturinn
the stain
Questions & Answers about Við ætlum að fá þessa bletti hreinsaða.
How does the fá + past participle structure work in this sentence?
The verb fá (to get) acts as a causative verb here. It is followed by an object (þessa bletti) and a past participle (hreinsaða) that describes what is done to the object. The golden rule for this structure is that the past participle must agree with the object in gender, number, and case.
Why is the object exactly þessa bletti instead of þessir blettir?
The verb fá requires its object to be in the accusative case. The word for stain is blettur, which is a masculine noun. The plural nominative form is þessir blettir, but because it is the object receiving the action, we must use the accusative plural form, which is þessa bletti.
How do we get the form hreinsaða from the verb hreinsa?
First, you take the basic past participle of hreinsa (to clean), which is hreinsaður. Because it has to agree with the masculine plural accusative object þessa bletti, you must change its ending. The masculine plural accusative ending for this type of past participle is -a, so hreinsaður becomes hreinsaða.
Is ætlum að used here just to show intention, or is it a future tense?
It acts as both! While ætla að literally means to intend to or to plan to, Icelandic uses it as the standard way to express the future tense when a person is deliberately going to do something. So translating this sentence as 'We are going to get these stains cleaned' is completely natural.
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