brjóta heilann

Icelandic

Etymology

Literally, “to break the brain”.

Verb

brjóta heilann (strong verb, third-person singular past indicative braut heilann, third-person plural past indicative brutu heilann, supine brotið heilann)

1. to ponder, to rack one's brain [with um (+ accusative) ‘about something’]

   Ég hef brotið heilann um spurninguna.

   I've been racking my brain about the question.