Breakdown of Gjörðu svo vel, hér er maturinn.
vera
to be
hér
here
maturinn
the food
gjörðu svo vel
here you are; please (when offering)
Questions & Answers about Gjörðu svo vel, hér er maturinn.
Why does Gjörðu svo vel mean "here you are" when giving someone food?
This is a very common Icelandic idiom. Literally, it translates to "do so well." You use it when handing something to someone, exactly like saying "here you go" or "here you are" in English. It can also mean "please" when offering something.
Does this phrase change if I am giving food to more than one person?
Yes, it does! Gjörðu is the singular form, so you only use it when speaking to one person. If you are handing food to a group of people, you would say gjörið svo vel (often pronounced geriði svo vel in spoken Icelandic).
Why does the word for food, maturinn, have -inn at the end?
In Icelandic, the word "the" is not a separate word that goes in front of the noun. Instead, it is added to the end as a suffix. The base word is matur (food), and adding -inn turns it into maturinn (the food).
How do I pronounce the letter é in the word hér?
Even though hér means "here" and looks similar to the English word, the letter é has a distinct sound. It is pronounced like "ye", so hér sounds closer to "hyer".
Learn Gjörðu svo vel, hér er maturinn and more in Icelandic
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free