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### Exclamations with *dat*

In English, we sometimes express strong outrage or disbelief with a dramatic phrase starting with "That..." (e.g., "That he would say such a thing!"). Dutch does exactly the same thing. You can form a strong exclamation simply by starting a sentence with *dat*.

Because this exclamation is grammatically a subordinate clause standing on its own, it uses **verb-final word order**. The conjugated verb and any other verbs in the clause are pushed to the very end.

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### Astonishing achievements

When someone pulls off an unbelievable feat or has the nerve to do something shocking, these *dat*-clauses are the perfect reaction. To emphasize your disbelief, you can add adverbs like *zowaar* (actually, surprisingly). 

Notice how verbs like *neerzetten* (to deliver or establish a record) and *presteren* (to pull off or achieve) wait at the very end of the exclamation:

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### Incomprehensible situations

Whether you are reacting to a ridiculous excuse or a true miracle (*het wonder*), this structure gives your sentence a punchy, dramatic finish. It is the natural way to express that you find a situation utterly *onbegrijpelijk* (incomprehensible).

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Exclamations (dat)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

determiner

determiner/pronoun

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular pronouns and 'to be' (ik ben, hij is)

The formal 'you' (u bent)

Definite articles (de, het)

Plural pronouns and 'to be' (wij zijn)

The verb 'to have' (hebben)

Basic word order

Numbers 1 to 10 (een, twee, drie)

Verb stems and the 'I' form (ik werk)

Long vowels in verb stems (maken, ik maak)

Short vowels in verb stems (zitten, ik zit)

Present tense singular (-t)

Present tense plural (-en)

Yes/no questions

Question words (wie, wat, waar)

Noun negation (geen)

Plural nouns (-en)

Plural nouns (-s)

Diminutives (-je)

Adjective modifiers (heel, erg, te)

Verb negation (niet)

Singular possessives (mijn, jouw, zijn, haar)

Plural and formal possessives (ons/onze, jullie, hun, uw)

This and these (deze, dit)

That and those (die, dat)

Asking which (welke, welk)

Numbers 11 to 20 (elf, twaalf, dertien...)

Tens and compound numbers (dertig, veertig...)

Ordinal numbers 1st to 10th (eerste, tweede...)

Telling time: hours and half hours (uur, half)

Telling time: quarters (kwart over, kwart voor)

Question words (hoeveel, waarom)

Irregular verbs (doen, gaan, staan, zien, komen)

Adjective endings (+e)

Adjectives with 'het' words

Prepositions of place (uit, bij)

Subject-verb inversion

Time before place

Modal verbs (willen, kunnen)

Modal verbs (moeten, mogen)

The verb bracket

Separable prefix verbs

The imperative mood (kom, luister)

Singular object pronouns (mij, jou, hem, haar)

Plural and formal object pronouns (ons, jullie, hen, u)

Reflexive verbs and pronouns (zich, me, je)

Position of negation (niet)

The present perfect tense with regular verbs (hebben gewerkt)

The present perfect tense with motion verbs (zijn gegaan)

Irregular past participles (gezien, gedaan)

The present continuous (zijn aan het)

There is / there are (er is, er zijn)

Unstressed there (er)

And, but, or (en, maar, of)

Because (want)

Months of the year

Prepositions of time (om, van ... tot)

Greetings and politeness

Conversational glue

Prepositions with days (op)

Prepositions with seasons (in)

Genitive of time ('s morgens, 's nachts)

Adverbs of frequency (altijd, vaak)

The future tense (gaan)

The future tense (zullen)

Separable verbs with auxiliary verbs

Apostrophe plurals ('-s)

Irregular plurals (-eren)

Complex diminutives (-pje, -etje, -kje)

Possessive 's (Jan's, vaders)

Indefinite pronouns (iets, niemand, alles)

Indefinite subject pronoun (je)

Reciprocal pronoun (elkaar)

Comparative adjectives (-er dan)

Comparatives with spelling change (-der)

Superlative adjectives (-st)

Irregular comparisons (beter, meer, minder)

Expressing preference (graag, liever, het liefst)

Equality comparisons (even ... als)

Fixed prepositions

That clauses (dat)

Because clauses (omdat)

If and when clauses (als)

Inversion after clauses

Separable verbs in clauses

Negation in clauses (niet)

Past tense of to be (was / waren)

Past tense of to have (had / hadden)

Question	Answer
actually (surprisingly)	zowaar
unimaginable	onvoorstelbaar
to make up	verzinnen
That they actually make up such an unimaginable story!	Dat ze zowaar zo'n onvoorstelbaar verhaal verzinnen!
the nerve	het lef
to conceal	verzwijgen
That the neighbor has the nerve to conceal that!	Dat de buurman het lef heeft om dat te verzwijgen!
astonishing	verbazingwekkend
to establish (e.g. a record)	neerzetten
That he actually delivered such an astonishing performance!	Dat hij zowaar zo'n verbazingwekkende prestatie heeft neergezet!
to achieve (perform)	presteren
That the doctor really pulled this off!	Dat de dokter dit echt heeft gepresteerd!
That he actually dares to make up such a ridiculous excuse!	Dat hij zo'n belachelijk excuus zowaar durft te verzinnen!
That you simply conceal that crucial detail!	Dat jullie dat cruciale detail gewoon verzwijgen!
He has delivered an unbelievable performance. Moreover, he secretly went training.	Hij heeft een ongelofelijke prestatie neergezet. Bovendien is hij stiekem wezen trainen.
They thought that they would pull it off, but they failed.	Ze dachten dat ze het zouden presteren, maar ze faalden.
That he had the nerve to betray us!	Dat hij het lef had om ons te verraden!
That they are just putting that enormous building over there!	Dat ze dat enorme gebouw daar zomaar neerzetten!
That this player actually pulls off something like that!	Dat deze speler zowaar zoiets presteert!
You often hide the truth. Moreover, you have the nerve to lie.	Je verzwijgt vaak de waarheid. Bovendien heb je het lef om te liegen.
the miracle	het wonder
incomprehensible	onbegrijpelijk
That she finds the miracle unimaginable and incomprehensible!	Dat zij het wonder onvoorstelbaar en onbegrijpelijk vindt!
That this miracle is so amazing and incomprehensible!	Dat dit wonder zo verbazingwekkend en onbegrijpelijk is!