When expressing goals, promises, or intentions, you might naturally use a main clause followed by a dat-clause. However, if the subject of both clauses is exactly the same, you can shorten the sentence. You do this by dropping dat and the second subject, and placing te directly before the infinitive at the end of the sentence.
The basic 'te' clause
Any other information in the sentence—like objects or time words such as voortaan (from now on)—comes before the te + infinitive.
| I swear to exercise from now on. | Ik zweer voortaan te sporten. |
| I swear never to smoke again. | Ik zweer nooit meer te roken. |
Intentions and resolutions
This structure (known in Dutch as a beknopte bijzin or concise subordinate clause) is extremely common with verbs and expressions about personal plans, such as zich voornemen (to intend) or geneigd zijn (to be inclined).
| He is inclined to complain a lot. | Hij is geneigd veel te klagen. |
| He intends to eat less meat. | Hij neemt zich voor minder vlees te eten. |
Separable verbs and 'te'
When the infinitive at the end of your clause is a separable verb—like aanleren (to acquire), afleren (to break a habit), or nastreven (to pursue)—the te is sandwiched in the middle. It sits directly between the separable prefix and the base verb, and all three parts are written as separate words.
| She hopes to acquire a healthy habit. | Zij hoopt een gezonde gewoonte aan te leren. |
| I have the ambition to pursue that goal. | Ik heb de ambitie dat doel na te streven. |
| He refuses to unlearn that. | Hij weigert dat af te leren. |