Breakdown of Deze luxe is geweldig, want we hoeven 's avonds niets te doen.
zijn
to be
doen
to do
deze
this / these
want
because
geweldig
great
niets
nothing
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
's avonds
in the evening
hoeven
to need (to)
te
to (infinitive marker)
de luxe
the luxury
Questions & Answers about Deze luxe is geweldig, want we hoeven 's avonds niets te doen.
The lesson is about hoeven niet te, but here I see hoeven ... niets te. Is that the same grammar rule?
Yes! The verb hoeven (to need) is always used with a negative word. Usually that is niet (not), but it works perfectly with niets (nothing) or niemand (nobody) too. Together, hoeven ... niets te doen means 'don't have to do anything'.
Why is the word order normal after want instead of pushing the verbs to the end?
The word want (because) connects two normal sentences without changing the word order. If you used the other Dutch word for because, omdat, the verbs would move to the end: omdat we 's avonds niets hoeven te doen.
What exactly does the 's in 's avonds mean?
It is a leftover from old Dutch, standing for des (of the). Today, 's avonds is a fixed expression meaning 'in the evening' or 'evenings'. You will also see this pattern in 's morgens (in the morning) and 's middags (in the afternoon).
Why does te doen go at the very end of the sentence?
In a Dutch main clause, the conjugated verb (here, hoeven) takes the second position after the subject we. Any extra verbs are pushed to the end of the sentence. The te always stays right in front of the infinitive doen.
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