Breakdown of Þú þarft að skræla kartöfluna áður en við eldum hana.
þú
you
hún
she
við
we
að
to (infinitive marker)
elda
to cook
þurfa
to need
kartaflan
the potato
skræla
to peel
áður en
before
Questions & Answers about Þú þarft að skræla kartöfluna áður en við eldum hana.
Why is 'before' translated as áður en instead of just áður?
When 'before' connects two full actions (clauses with subjects and verbs), you must use áður en. If you were just saying 'I have done this before' without adding a new action, you would use áður on its own.
Why does the sentence use hana for 'it' instead of það?
In Icelandic, pronouns must match the grammatical gender of the noun they refer back to. The word for potato, kartafla, is a feminine noun. Therefore, we use the feminine pronoun hún (she/it). It becomes hana here because it is the direct object of the verb eldum (cook), which puts it in the accusative case.
How does the word kartöfluna break down?
The base word is kartafla (potato). Because it is the direct object being peeled, it takes the accusative case, which changes the ending to -u and causes the first a to become ö (making it kartöflu). Finally, we attach the feminine accusative definite article (the), which is -na, giving us kartöfluna (the potato).
Why do we need the word að before skræla?
The verb þurfa (to need) is followed by the dictionary form of the next verb (the infinitive). Just like in English where you say 'need to peel', in Icelandic you use the infinitive marker að before the verb to make it að skræla.
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