Word
De mensen stappen snel in.
Meaning
The people are boarding quickly.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of De mensen stappen snel in.
snel
fast
de mens
the human / the person
instappen
to board / to get in
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Questions & Answers about De mensen stappen snel in.
Why is in at the very end of the sentence?
This is because instappen (to board) is a separable verb. In a regular present-tense sentence, the verb splits. The main part (stappen) takes the normal verb position, and the prefix (in) gets pushed all the way to the end of the sentence.
Does stappen mean 'boarding' on its own?
No, on its own, stappen just means 'to step' or 'to walk'. It is the combination of stappen and the prefix in (forming instappen) that gives the specific meaning of 'getting in' a vehicle or 'boarding'.
Why does the word snel (quickly) go before in?
Because the golden rule for separable verbs is that the prefix (in) must go to the very end of the clause. Any other details, like how fast the people are boarding (snel), get sandwiched between the two parts of the split verb.
The English translation says 'are boarding'. Where is the word for 'are' in the Dutch sentence?
Dutch doesn't usually use a continuous form with an 'are' verb like English does. The simple Dutch present tense stappen in translates to both 'board' and 'are boarding'.