Breakdown of Hópurinn er glaðastur þegar við bætum heimsmetið.
vera
to be
við
we
glaður
glad
hópurinn
the group
þegar
when
bæta
to improve
heimsmetið
the world record
Questions & Answers about Hópurinn er glaðastur þegar við bætum heimsmetið.
Why does the adjective end in -astur (glaðastur) instead of just -ast?
Because it describes hópurinn (the group), which is a masculine noun. In Icelandic, superlative adjectives like 'happiest' must still match the gender and number of the noun. Since it comes directly after the verb 'to be' without an article, it uses the strong masculine singular superlative ending -astur.
The group represents multiple people. Why are hópurinn and glaðastur in the singular?
Hópur (group) is a collective noun. Even though it contains many people, the word itself is grammatically singular. Because of this, the verb er (is) and the adjective glaðastur (happiest) must also be singular.
How is the word heimsmetið built?
It is a compound word made of heimur (world) and met (record), with the neuter definite article -ið (the) attached at the end. The -s- in the middle is a possessive connecting letter, so it literally means 'world's record'.
What does the verb bætum mean in this context?
The verb að bæta generally means to improve, repair, or add to. When talking about records in Icelandic, you use að bæta met to mean breaking or improving a record. Here it ends in -um because the subject is við (we).
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