Breakdown of Mijn broers waren soms stout, maar ik was braaf.
ik
I
zijn
to be
maar
but
de broer
the brother
mijn
my
soms
sometimes
braaf
well-behaved
stout
naughty
Questions & Answers about Mijn broers waren soms stout, maar ik was braaf.
Why do we use waren for the brothers but was for 'I'?
This is the simple past tense of zijn (to be). You use waren for all plural subjects, like mijn broers (my brothers), wij (we), and zij (they). You use was for singular subjects, like ik (I), hij (he), or het (it).
Why doesn't the word maar push the verb was to the end of the sentence?
The word maar (but) is a coordinating conjunction, just like en (and). It links two normal sentences together without changing their word order. Because of this, the second part follows the standard Subject-Verb rule: ik (subject) then was (verb).
Could I put soms at the beginning of the sentence?
Yes, but remember that the conjugated verb must always take the second position in a Dutch main clause. If you start the sentence with Soms, the verb waren must come immediately after it, pushing the subject to the third spot: Soms waren mijn broers stout...
Is braaf only used for children?
No, braaf means 'well-behaved' or 'obedient' and is very commonly used for pets as well. If you want to praise your dog and tell them they are a 'good dog' in Dutch, you would say brave hond!
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