Breakdown of De studenten mogen binnen niet roken.
de student
the student
niet
not
roken
to smoke
binnen
inside
Questions & Answers about De studenten mogen binnen niet roken.
Why does niet come right before roken?
This sentence has two verbs: mogen and roken. When a sentence has a second verb pushed to the end, the negative word niet is placed right before that final verb.
Why does niet come after binnen instead of before it?
In Dutch, niet usually comes after specific times and places. Because binnen (inside) tells us where this happens, niet goes after it. If you put niet before binnen, you would specifically be emphasizing "not inside (but maybe outside)", rather than just stating a general rule.
Why is roken at the very end of the sentence?
This is because of the verb mogen (to be allowed to). When you use a modal verb like this, it takes the normal verb spot (second place) in the sentence, and the main action verb (roken) gets pushed to the very end in its full dictionary form (the infinitive).