Questions & Answers about Ik moest op de saaie baan solliciteren.
How does the verb moest work here?
Moest is the simple past tense (imperfectum) of the modal verb moeten (must / to have to). When talking about the past, Dutch strongly prefers using this simple past form for modal verbs. So, ik moest translates exactly to "I had to".
Why is solliciteren at the very end of the sentence?
This happens because of the modal verb moest. In a standard Dutch sentence, the conjugated modal verb takes the second position, and it pushes the main action verb (solliciteren) to the very end of the sentence in its full infinitive dictionary form.
Why do we use op instead of voor to mean "for" the job?
In Dutch, the verb solliciteren (to apply) has fixed prepositions: you must use either op or naar. While in English you apply for a job, in Dutch you apply on (op) or to (naar) a job. You cannot use voor here.
Why is there an extra "-e" on the word saai?