Breakdown of Toen de jongen de muis zag, wilde hij hem vangen.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
de jongen
the boy
zien
to see
willen
to want
hem
him
toen
when / then (in the past)
de muis
the mouse
vangen
to catch
Questions & Answers about Toen de jongen de muis zag, wilde hij hem vangen.
What verb does zag come from?
Zag is the simple past tense of zien (to see). It is an irregular verb, which means it changes its vowel in the past tense instead of adding -te or -de like regular verbs.
Can I use wanneer instead of toen for the word "when"?
Not here! You must use toen when talking about a specific, single event in the past. You use wanneer for present or future events, or for things that happen repeatedly (meaning "whenever").
Why is zag pushed to the end of the first part of the sentence?
The word toen (when) kicks the verb to the end of its clause. This is a strict rule for subordinating conjunctions, which are linking words that introduce a dependent clause.
Why does the second half start with wilde hij instead of hij wilde?
Because the entire first phrase (Toen de jongen de muis zag) takes up the first spot in the sentence. Dutch has a strict "Verb Second" rule, so the main verb wilde must be in the second spot, forcing it to swap places with the subject hij.
Why do we use hem (him) to refer to the mouse instead of het (it)?
Because muis is a de-word (de muis). In Dutch, when you refer back to a de-word as an object, you use hem (him). You only use het (it) to refer back to het-words.
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