Breakdown of Mag ik mijn broers oplader lenen?
ik
I
de broer
the brother
mogen
to be allowed to / may
mijn
my
de oplader
the charger
lenen
to borrow / to lend
Questions & Answers about Mag ik mijn broers oplader lenen?
Why is it broers without an apostrophe, instead of broer's?
In Dutch, you just add an -s to a name or family member to make it possessive, as long as it doesn't change how the vowel sounds. Because adding an -s to broer doesn't change how the oe is pronounced, no apostrophe is needed!
Broers can also mean brothers (plural). How do I know it means brother's here?
You have to look at the structure! Mijn broers oplader translates directly to 'my brother's charger'. If you wanted to talk about multiple brothers (my brothers' charger), you would normally avoid the possessive -s and use van (of) instead: de oplader van mijn broers.
Why is the verb lenen all the way at the end of the sentence?
This happens because of the modal verb mag (may/am allowed to). When you use a modal verb, it takes the main verb spot (which is at the start here, because it is a yes/no question), and the action verb (lenen) gets pushed to the very end in its full dictionary form.
Does lenen mean borrow or lend?
It can mean both! In Dutch, lenen is used for both borrowing and lending. You have to rely on the context of the sentence. Here, Mag ik... lenen? clearly means 'May I borrow...?'. To be extra clear about lending something out, Dutch speakers often use the verb uitlenen.
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