Breakdown of Als jij dit niet bewijst, geloof ik deze smoes niet.
ik
I
jij
you
niet
not
deze
this / these
dit
this (neuter)
geloven
to believe
als
if / when (condition)
de smoes
the excuse
bewijzen
to prove
Questions & Answers about Als jij dit niet bewijst, geloof ik deze smoes niet.
Why is niet right before the verb in the first half of the sentence?
The first half is a subordinate clause because it starts with Als (If). In these clauses, the verb (bewijst) is sent to the very end. The word niet is placed after the specific object (dit), which pushes niet right up against the verb at the end.
Why is the second niet at the very end of the sentence?
In a main clause, niet usually goes as far back as possible when negating a specific object. Because deze smoes (this excuse) is a specific object, niet goes directly after it, landing at the very end of the sentence.
Why does the second part say geloof ik instead of ik geloof?
In Dutch, the verb must be the second piece of information in a main clause. The entire first clause (Als jij dit niet bewijst) counts as piece number one. Therefore, the main verb (geloof) must come immediately after the comma, pushing the subject (ik) behind it. This swapping of subject and verb is called inversion.
Both dit and deze mean 'this'. Why are they different here?
Here, dit stands alone to mean 'this thing' in general, which takes the het-word form. However, deze is attached to the noun smoes. Because the word for excuse is a de-word (de smoes), you must use deze to say deze smoes.
Learn Als jij dit niet bewijst, geloof ik deze smoes niet 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