Breakdown of Wij weten dat hij morgen komt.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
wij
we
morgen
tomorrow
komen
to come
weten
to know (a fact)
dat
that (conjunction)
Questions & Answers about Wij weten dat hij morgen komt.
Why is the verb komt at the very end of the sentence?
In Dutch, when you use a linking word like dat (that) to start a new clause, it pushes the conjugated verb to the very end of that clause. So, instead of saying dat hij komt morgen, the verb moves to the end: dat hij morgen komt.
The English translation says 'is coming', but komt just means 'comes'. Why isn't there a translation for 'is'?
Dutch rarely uses a 'to be + -ing' structure for future plans. Instead, Dutch uses the simple present tense verb (komt) along with a time word like morgen (tomorrow) to show that the action will happen in the future.
In English, we can just say 'We know he is coming tomorrow' and drop the word 'that'. Can I drop dat in Dutch?
No, you cannot. In English, dropping 'that' is very common, but in Dutch, you must always include dat to connect the two clauses.
Could I use we instead of Wij at the start of this sentence?
Yes, you can! Wij is the stressed form of 'we'. You use Wij if you want to emphasize that we know it, as opposed to someone else. If there is no special emphasis, We weten dat hij morgen komt is perfectly natural.
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