Not every conjunction in Dutch is a single word. Alongside omdat, terwijl and hoewel sits a large family of multiword connectors — zodat, zonder dat, voor zover, op voorwaarde dat, behalve dat, met dien verstande dat — built from two, three or four words but functioning as a single subordinating conjunction. The good news is that they behave with total consistency: nearly all of them are subordinators, and a subordinator does one thing above all else, no matter how many words it is spelled with — it sends the finite verb to the very end of its clause. The trap for English speakers is that the connector "feels" like a phrase (a preposition plus a noun, say), so you forget it is grammatically a single conjunction and you leave the verb in the wrong place. This page fixes that.
The core rule: length doesn't change the grammar
A subordinating conjunction triggers verb-final order. This is true of dat (one word) and equally true of met dien verstande dat (four words). The whole multiword string occupies the conjunction slot; everything after it is the subordinate clause, and the conjugated verb goes last.
Ik heb het zo opgeschreven, zodat iedereen het meteen begrijpt.
I wrote it down this way, so that everyone understands it immediately. (zodat → verb 'begrijpt' at the end)
We gaan door, op voorwaarde dat het weer een beetje opklaart.
We'll carry on, on condition that the weather clears up a bit. (op voorwaarde dat → 'opklaart' at the end)
Voor zover ik weet, is de winkel op zondag dicht.
As far as I know, the shop is closed on Sundays. (voor zover → 'weet' at the end; then the main clause inverts)
In that last example, watch both clauses: voor zover ik weet ends in the verb (subordinate clause first), and then the main clause inverts — is de winkel — exactly as it would after any fronted subordinate clause.
The everyday multiword subordinators
These are the ones you will use constantly. All are subordinating; all push the verb to the end.
| Connector | English | Register |
|---|---|---|
| zodat | so that (result/purpose) | neutral |
| zonder dat | without (someone) ...-ing | neutral |
| voor zover | as far as / insofar as | neutral |
| behalve dat | except that / apart from the fact that | neutral |
| in plaats van dat | instead of (someone) ...-ing | neutral / informal |
| op voorwaarde dat | on condition that, provided that | neutral / formal |
Behalve dat het regende, was het een perfecte dag.
Apart from the fact that it rained, it was a perfect day. (behalve dat → 'regende' at the end)
In plaats van dat hij belde, stuurde hij een berichtje.
Instead of calling, he sent a text. (in plaats van dat → 'belde' final; main clause then inverts)
The formal and bureaucratic multiword subordinators
Dutch officialese loves long connectors. These are at home in contracts, policy documents and careful prose; in casual speech they sound stiff. Recognise them — and use them only where the register fits.
| Connector | English | Register |
|---|---|---|
| met dien verstande dat | with the proviso that | (formal / legal) |
| afgezien van het feit dat | apart from the fact that | (formal) |
| in zoverre dat | insofar as / to the extent that | (formal / academic) |
| gesteld dat | supposing that, assuming that | (formal) |
De levertijd is twee weken, met dien verstande dat feestdagen niet meetellen.
The delivery time is two weeks, with the proviso that public holidays don't count. (formal/legal; 'meetellen' at the end)
Gesteld dat de begroting wordt goedgekeurd, starten we in september.
Supposing the budget is approved, we'll start in September. (gesteld dat → 'wordt goedgekeurd' final)
The big one for English speakers: zonder dat vs zonder te
English collapses two different Dutch constructions into a single "without ...-ing." Dutch keeps them apart, and choosing between them is a genuine B2 skill.
Use zonder te + infinitive when the same subject does (or doesn't do) both things — there is no second subject, so you need no dat and no second conjugated verb. The infinitive (with its bits) goes to the end, after te.
Hij liep de kamer uit zonder iets te zeggen.
He walked out of the room without saying anything. (same subject 'hij' for both actions → zonder te + infinitive)
Ze loste de som op zonder na te denken.
She solved the sum without thinking. (one subject → zonder te; note 'na te denken' from separable 'nadenken')
Use zonder dat + full clause when there is a different subject in the second part, or when you need a finite verb to express it. Now zonder dat is a true subordinating conjunction and the verb goes to the end.
Hij is vertrokken zonder dat iemand het merkte.
He left without anyone noticing. (different subject 'iemand' → zonder dat + verb-final 'merkte')
Je kunt hier parkeren zonder dat je hoeft te betalen.
You can park here without having to pay. (a full clause with its own finite verb → zonder dat)
The decision is mechanical once you see it: one subject → zonder te + infinitive; two subjects (or you need a finite verb) → zonder dat + verb-final clause. The same logic governs in plaats van te vs in plaats van dat.
A coordinating exception to keep you honest
Almost all multiword connectors are subordinating, but not quite all linking expressions are. The conjunctional adverbs built from more than one word — en toch ("and yet"), en dus ("and so") — behave like adverbs: they trigger inversion (verb second), not verb-final. Don't lump these in with the subordinators above; they are a different class, covered on the conjunctional adverbs page. The reliable rule is: if the connector ends in dat (zodat, op voorwaarde dat, zonder dat…), it is subordinating and the verb goes to the end.
Hij had hard gestudeerd, en toch zakte hij voor het examen.
He had studied hard, and yet he failed the exam. (en toch → inversion: 'zakte hij', not verb-final)
Common Mistakes
❌ Ik heb het opgeschreven, zodat iedereen het meteen begrijpt het.
Wrong — 'zodat' is subordinating, so the verb goes to the end exactly once: 'begrijpt' last, no doubling.
✅ Ik heb het opgeschreven, zodat iedereen het meteen begrijpt.
I wrote it down so that everyone understands it immediately.
❌ Op voorwaarde dat het klaart op, gaan we door.
Wrong — after a multiword subordinator the whole verb cluster goes to the end: 'opklaart', not split as V2 'klaart op'.
✅ Op voorwaarde dat het opklaart, gaan we door.
Provided the weather clears up, we'll carry on.
❌ Hij liep weg zonder dat iets te zeggen.
Wrong — same subject for both actions, so use 'zonder te' + infinitive, not 'zonder dat'.
✅ Hij liep weg zonder iets te zeggen.
He walked away without saying anything.
❌ Hij vertrok zonder iemand het te merken.
Wrong — there's a second subject ('iemand'), so you need 'zonder dat' + a finite verb at the end, not a 'zonder te' infinitive.
✅ Hij vertrok zonder dat iemand het merkte.
He left without anyone noticing.
❌ Voor zover ik weet is dicht de winkel op zondag.
Wrong — after the fronted 'voor zover' clause the main clause must invert cleanly: 'is de winkel dicht', not 'is dicht de winkel'.
✅ Voor zover ik weet, is de winkel op zondag dicht.
As far as I know, the shop is closed on Sundays.
Key Takeaways
- A multiword connector is one conjunction; its length never changes the word order it triggers.
- If it ends in dat (zodat, zonder dat, op voorwaarde dat, met dien verstande dat), it is subordinating → finite verb to the end.
- zonder te + infinitive for one subject; zonder dat + verb-final clause for a second subject. Same split for in plaats van te / dat.
- Multiword conjunctional adverbs like en toch / en dus trigger inversion, not verb-final — a separate class.
Now practice Dutch
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Start learning Dutch→Related Topics
- Dutch Conjunctions: OverviewA2 — The three families of Dutch joining words — coordinating, subordinating, and conjunctional adverbs — and the word-order effect each one has on its clause.
- Causal Conjunctions: Omdat, Doordat, Want, AangezienB1 — The Dutch 'because' family — how omdat, doordat, want and aangezien differ in meaning, register and word order, and the key reason-vs-cause distinction.
- Want, Dus, Omdat, Doordat: A SummaryB2 — A consolidated decision guide to the Dutch cause-and-result connectors — sorting want, dus, omdat, doordat, daarom and daardoor by two questions at once: cause or result, and which word-order class the connector belongs to.
- Conjunctional Adverbs: Daarom, Dus, Toch, Echter, BovendienB2 — Words like daarom, dus and echter connect ideas in meaning but are grammatically adverbs — so when they open a clause they force V2 inversion, unlike want (no change) and omdat (verb-final).
- Verb-Final Order in Subordinate ClausesA2 — After a subordinating conjunction, relative pronoun, or question word, the entire verb cluster — including the finite verb — moves to the end of the clause.
- Advanced Clause Linking and CohesionC1 — How to build cohesive multi-clause discourse in Dutch: choosing between subordinators, conjunctional adverbs and coordinators — each with its own word-order effect — and deploying formal connectives like immers, derhalve, niettemin and daarentegen without losing your footing on the verb.