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Staðreyndin er sönn.

Staðreyndin er sönn.
The fact is true.
From Lesson 156:Indirect yes-or-no questions (hvort)·Icelandic

Breakdown of Staðreyndin er sönn.

vera
to be
sannur
true
staðreyndin
the fact

Questions & Answers about Staðreyndin er sönn.

Why is the adjective sönn instead of sannur?
Adjectives must match the gender of the noun they describe. Staðreyndin (the fact) is a feminine noun, so the adjective takes the feminine singular form. The base word sannur (true) drops its masculine -ur ending and the root vowel a shifts to ö to become sönn.
How can I tell that staðreyndin is a feminine noun?
The definite article (the attached 'the' part at the end) is -in, which is a strong clue that it is a feminine singular noun. The base word is staðreynd, and in Icelandic, nouns ending in -nd are almost always feminine.
How would I use this sentence in an indirect question with hvort?
To say 'I do not know whether the fact is true', you would simply say: Ég veit ekki hvort staðreyndin er sönn. Notice that the word order in the second half stays exactly the same as our example sentence. The word hvort just connects the two phrases without changing the verb position.

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