Bolurinn er frekar stuttur.

From Lesson 116:Adverbs of degree·Icelandic

Breakdown of Bolurinn er frekar stuttur.

vera
to be
bolurinn
the t-shirt
stuttur
short
frekar
rather

Questions & Answers about Bolurinn er frekar stuttur.

How does the adverb frekar work in this sentence?
Here, frekar is an adverb of degree meaning "rather", "fairly", or "quite". It sits right before the adjective it modifies (stuttur). Because it is an adverb, its form is fixed and it never changes its ending to match the noun.
Can frekar also mean "rather" when talking about what you prefer?
Yes! In Icelandic, frekar is used both as an adverb of degree to soften an adjective (as seen in this sentence) and to express a preference, like saying "I would rather wear a different shirt".
Why does the adjective stuttur have the -ur ending here?
It describes bolurinn (the t-shirt). Since bolurinn is a masculine, singular noun in the nominative case (the subject of the sentence), the adjective must match it in gender, number, and case. The standard masculine singular nominative ending for this adjective is -ur.
How does bolurinn translate to "the t-shirt"?
The base word is bolur, which is a masculine noun meaning "t-shirt" or "top". To say "the" t-shirt, Icelandic attaches the definite article to the end of the word instead of using a separate word. For this noun, the article ending is -inn, making it bolurinn.

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