Breakdown of De docent is hier, maar ze heeft geen tijd.
zijn
to be
zij
she
hier
here
de docent
the teacher
maar
but
hebben
to have
de tijd
the time
geen
no / not any
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
Questions & Answers about De docent is hier, maar ze heeft geen tijd.
Why does the sentence use heeft instead of heb?
Heeft is the form of the verb hebben (to have) used for he, she, or it. Since the subject here is ze (she), we use heeft. The form heb is used for ik (I).
Why do we use geen here instead of niet to say she does not have time?
Could I use zij instead of ze?
Yes. Ze and zij both mean she. Ze is the unstressed version and is much more common in everyday speech. You would only use zij if you wanted to put special emphasis on who does not have time.
Does the word docent specifically mean a female teacher?
No, docent can refer to a male or female teacher. In this sentence, we know the teacher is female because the second half uses ze (she). Sometimes you might see the specific female version, docente, but using docent for everyone is very common.
Why doesn't the verb move to the end of the sentence after maar?
The word maar (but) is a connecting word that does not change the word order of the sentence that follows it. You just build a normal sentence right after it: subject (ze), then verb (heeft), then the object (geen tijd).
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