An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 25 most common Icelandic idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Icelandic idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, Þetta reddast literally means "this sorts itself out" but is used to mean things will work out fine in the end, so there is no point worrying. This free page ranks the 25 most common Icelandic idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 25 idioms, most common first.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of August 2026.
Þetta reddast
Literally this sorts itself out
Means things will work out fine in the end, so there is no point worrying
Example Ekki hafa áhyggjur af þessu, þetta reddast alltaf einhvern veginn.
Do not worry about it, it always works out somehow.
Note The best known Icelandic saying, treated in Iceland as a national attitude to problems rather than just a phrase.
að koma af fjöllum
Literally to come from the mountains
Means to have no idea what is going on, to know nothing about the matter
English idiom be out of the loop
Example Þegar ég spurði hann um málið kom hann alveg af fjöllum.
When I asked him about the matter, he had no idea what I was talking about.
að vera skotinn í einhverjum
Literally to be shot into someone
Means to be attracted to someone and unable to stop thinking about them
English idiom have a crush on someone
Example Ég held að hann sé skotinn í þér.
I think he has a crush on you.
Note Casual everyday speech, used for a light infatuation rather than deep love.
að rífa kjaft
Literally to tear jaw
Means to answer back rudely, especially to someone in charge
English idiom mouth off
Example Ekki rífa kjaft við mömmu þína!
Do not talk back to your mother!
Note Informal and disapproving, most often said to children or about someone being cheeky.
að vera úti á þekju
Literally to be out on the roof
Means to be not paying attention or completely off the point
English idiom be miles away
Example Fyrirgefðu, ég var alveg úti á þekju og heyrði ekki spurninguna.
Sorry, I was miles away and did not hear the question.
að slá tvær flugur í einu höggi
Literally to hit two flies in one blow
Means to solve two problems with a single action
English idiom kill two birds with one stone
Example Með því að hjóla í vinnuna slæ ég tvær flugur í einu höggi.
By cycling to work I kill two birds with one stone.
að gera úlfalda úr mýflugu
Literally to make a camel out of a gnat
Means to treat something tiny as if it were huge
English idiom make a mountain out of a molehill
Example Slappaðu af, þú ert bara að gera úlfalda úr mýflugu.
Relax, you are just making a mountain out of a molehill.
að ganga af göflunum
Literally to go off the gables
Means to lose control completely and go wild
English idiom go berserk
Example Hann gekk af göflunum þegar hann sá reikninginn.
He went berserk when he saw the bill.
Note Works both for rage and for a crowd going wild with excitement, so the context decides.
að taka pokann sinn
Literally to take one's bag
Means to have to leave a job, pushed out or resigning under pressure
English idiom pack one's bags
Example Forstjórinn þurfti að taka pokann sinn eftir hneykslið.
The CEO had to pack his bags after the scandal.
að hafa mörg járn í eldinum
Literally to have many irons in the fire
Means to have several projects running at the same time
English idiom have many irons in the fire
Example Hún hefur alltaf mörg járn í eldinum.
She always has a lot of irons in the fire.
að vera í essinu sínu
Literally to be in one's ess
Means to be doing what one is best at and clearly enjoying it
English idiom be in one's element
Example Hann er algjörlega í essinu sínu þegar hann eldar fyrir gesti.
He is completely in his element when he cooks for guests.
Note Ess has no meaning of its own in Icelandic. It came in through Danish and goes back to Latin esse, state or condition.
að leggja árar í bát
Literally to lay the oars in the boat
Means to give up and stop trying
English idiom throw in the towel
Example Þrátt fyrir mótlætið ætlar hún ekki að leggja árar í bát.
Despite the setbacks she is not going to throw in the towel.
að fara úr öskunni í eldinn
Literally to go from the ashes into the fire
Means to escape a bad situation and land in a worse one
English idiom out of the frying pan into the fire
Example Hann fór úr öskunni í eldinn þegar hann skipti um vinnu.
He went out of the frying pan into the fire when he changed jobs.
að hafa vaðið fyrir neðan sig
Literally to have the ford below oneself
Means to take precautions in advance so nothing can go wrong
English idiom play it safe
Example Hann tók afrit af skjölunum til að hafa vaðið fyrir neðan sig.
He made copies of the documents to be on the safe side.
Note The picture comes from fording Icelandic rivers, where you keep a crossing point downstream in case the current takes you.
að vera á nálum
Literally to be on needles
Means to be tense and anxious while waiting for something
English idiom be on pins and needles
Example Ég var á nálum þar til úrslitin voru tilkynnt.
I was on pins and needles until the results were announced.
að kaupa köttinn í sekknum
Literally to buy the cat in the sack
Means to buy something without checking it and end up with a bad deal
English idiom buy a pig in a poke
Example Skoðaðu bílinn vel áður en þú kaupir hann, annars kaupirðu köttinn í sekknum.
Look the car over properly before you buy it, or you will be buying a pig in a poke.
að taka af skarið
Literally to take off the burnt wick
Means to take the initiative and make the move that gets things going
Example Einhver verður að taka af skarið og hringja í hana.
Someone has to take the first step and call her.
Note Skar is the charred tip of a candle wick, which had to be trimmed off to get a brighter flame.
að fara á kostum
Literally to go on one's merits
Means to perform brilliantly, well above the usual level
Example Leikkonan fór á kostum í aðalhlutverkinu.
The actress was brilliant in the leading role.
Note Most often heard in sports commentary and in reviews of performances.
að bíta á jaxlinn
Literally to bite on the molar
Means to push through something painful without complaining
English idiom grit one's teeth
Example Hún beit á jaxlinn og kláraði hlaupið þrátt fyrir meiðslin.
She gritted her teeth and finished the race despite the injury.
að leggja höfuðið í bleyti
Literally to lay the head in soak
Means to think hard about a problem
English idiom put on one's thinking cap
Example Við þurfum að leggja höfuðið í bleyti og finna betri lausn.
We need to put our thinking caps on and find a better solution.
að draga dilk á eftir sér
Literally to drag a lamb behind oneself
Means for a matter to bring serious consequences later on
Example Þetta mál á eftir að draga dilk á eftir sér.
This matter is going to have serious consequences.
Note Common in news and formal discussion, much less so in casual chat.
Þar stendur hnífurinn í kúnni
Literally there the knife stands in the cow
Means that is exactly the point where everything is stuck
English idiom that is the sticking point
Example Fjármögnunin er ekki tryggð og þar stendur hnífurinn í kúnni.
The funding is not secured, and that is the sticking point.
Note Used as a clause of its own rather than slotted into another sentence.
að hafa í sig og á
Literally to have in oneself and on oneself
Means to earn just enough for food and clothes, to get by
English idiom make ends meet
Example Launin duga varla til að hafa í sig og á.
The wages are barely enough to make ends meet.
Note Also heard with eiga instead of hafa: að eiga í sig og á.
að skjóta einhverjum ref fyrir rass
Literally to shoot a fox past someone's backside
Means to outsmart someone and get the better of them
English idiom outfox someone
Example Hann skaut keppinautunum ref fyrir rass og náði samningnum.
He outfoxed his competitors and landed the contract.
að bera í bakkafullan lækinn
Literally to carry into the brimful brook
Means to add more of something there is already plenty of
English idiom carry coals to Newcastle
Example Ég veit að þetta er að bera í bakkafullan lækinn, en ég ætla samt að minna á fundinn.
I know this is carrying coals to Newcastle, but I still want to remind everyone about the meeting.
Note More at home in writing and formal speech than in casual conversation.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Þetta reddast comes out as "this sorts itself out", which makes no sense until you know it means things will work out fine in the end, so there is no point worrying.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Icelandic sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Icelandic idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with Þetta reddast, að koma af fjöllum, að vera skotinn í einhverjum, að rífa kjaft, að vera úti á þekju. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 25 of them with meanings and example sentences.
In Icelandic, "Þetta reddast" translates literally as "this sorts itself out", but it actually means things will work out fine in the end, so there is no point worrying. Example: Ekki hafa áhyggjur af þessu, þetta reddast alltaf einhvern veginn. ("Do not worry about it, it always works out somehow.")
The Icelandic equivalent is "að koma af fjöllum", literally "to come from the mountains". Example: Þegar ég spurði hann um málið kom hann alveg af fjöllum. ("When I asked him about the matter, he had no idea what I was talking about.")
In Icelandic, an idiom is called orðatiltæki, and a proverb is málsháttur. An orðatiltæki (also called orðtak) is a fixed figurative phrase that you bend into your own sentence, while a málsháttur is a complete sentence stating a general truth.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Þetta reddast translates literally as "this sorts itself out", yet it means things will work out fine in the end, so there is no point worrying. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Icelandic with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.