Breakdown of Hij zegt dat het verhaal niet klopt.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
niet
not
zeggen
to say
het verhaal
the story
Questions & Answers about Hij zegt dat het verhaal niet klopt.
Why is the verb klopt at the very end of the sentence?
This is because of the word dat (that). Dat is a subordinating conjunction, which means it links a main sentence to a secondary clause. In Dutch, these linking words force the conjugated verb in that second part to move all the way to the end.
The English translation says "is incorrect", but the Dutch uses niet klopt. What does klopt mean on its own?
Why is niet placed before the verb klopt here? I thought niet usually comes after the verb.
You are right that in a regular, simple sentence, niet often comes after the verb (like in Het verhaal klopt niet). But because the linking word dat pushes the verb klopt to the very end of the clause, niet ends up right in front of it.
In English, we can say "He says the story is incorrect" and drop the word "that". Can we drop dat in Dutch?
No, you cannot. While English allows you to leave out "that" in these types of sentences, Dutch always requires you to use dat to connect the two clauses.