Zodra de politie aankomt, vertellen wij de waarheid.
As soon as the police arrive, we tell the truth.
Breakdown of Zodra de politie aankomt, vertellen wij de waarheid.
wij
we
aankomen
to arrive
vertellen
to tell
de waarheid
the truth
de politie
the police
zodra
as soon as
Questions & Answers about Zodra de politie aankomt, vertellen wij de waarheid.
Why is it vertellen wij instead of wij vertellen?
This is because the sentence starts with a subordinate clause (Zodra de politie aankomt). In Dutch, if a sentence begins with anything other than the subject—in this case, an entire clause—the main verb must come right after it. So, the main verb vertellen must swap places with the subject wij. This is called inversion.
Why is the verb aankomt at the very end of the first part of the sentence?
The word zodra (as soon as) introduces a subordinate clause. In Dutch subordinate clauses, the verb is always pushed to the very end of that clause, right before the comma.
I thought aankomen (to arrive) was a separable verb. Why isn't it split up into komt aan here?
You are right, it is a separable verb! In a normal main clause, it would split (for example: De politie komt aan). However, because the rules of a subordinate clause push the verb to the end, the separated prefix (aan) and the conjugated verb (komt) bump into each other and are glued back together as aankomt.
Why does the Dutch sentence use a singular verb (aankomt) when the English translation says "the police arrive" (plural)?
In English, "police" is treated as a plural group. In Dutch, however, de politie is grammatically a singular noun. Therefore, it takes the singular verb form (aankomt), just like it would for hij or zij (he or she).
Learn Zodra de politie aankomt, vertellen wij de waarheid and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free