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Skemmdin á málverkinu er að miklu leyti óbætanleg.

Skemmdin á málverkinu er að miklu leyti óbætanleg.
The damage to the painting is to a large extent irreparable.
From Lesson 484:Phrases of extent (að ... leyti)·Icelandic

Questions & Answers about Skemmdin á málverkinu er að miklu leyti óbætanleg.

Why does 'to a large extent' translate to að miklu leyti?
This sentence demonstrates the fixed prepositional frame að + dative neuter adjective + leyti. The noun leyti (extent/part) is neuter, so the adjective describing it (here, mikill) must be in its neuter dative form, miklu.
Why do we say skemmdin á málverkinu using the preposition á instead of a word for 'to'?
In English we say damage 'to' something, but Icelandic typically uses á (on) plus the dative case for damage, marks, or changes affecting a physical object. It literally conceptualizes the damage as being 'on' the painting.
Why is the adjective óbætanleg in the feminine form?
It must agree with the subject of the sentence, skemmdin (the damage). Since skemmdin is a feminine, singular, nominative noun, the predicative adjective óbætanleg (irreparable) takes the feminine singular nominative ending.
What are the building blocks of the word óbætanleg?
It is formed with the negative prefix ó- (un-/ir-), the root of the verb að bæta (to repair/compensate), and the adjective suffix -leg (equivalent to English -able). Combined, they mean 'irreparable'.

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