Breakdown of We drinken koffie nadat we de machine uitzetten.
drinken
to drink
de koffie
the coffee
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
de machine
the machine
nadat
after
uitzetten
to turn off (devices, machines)
Questions & Answers about We drinken koffie nadat we de machine uitzetten.
Why is uitzetten at the very end of the sentence?
The word nadat (after) is a subordinating conjunction. This means it introduces a subclause, which always pushes its working verb to the very end of the sentence. That is why the word order changes to nadat we de machine uitzetten instead of the regular Subject-Verb-Object order.
Uitzetten (to turn off) is a separable verb. Why aren't we splitting it into zetten ... uit here?
In a normal main sentence, you would split it: We zetten de machine uit. However, because nadat pushes the verb all the way to the end of the sentence, the two parts of the separable verb are forced into the exact same spot. Whenever that happens, they glue back together into one single word: uitzetten.
Could I just say na instead of nadat?
No, you have to use nadat here because it connects two full clauses (it is followed by a new subject and a verb: we ... uitzetten). You only use na when it is followed just by a noun, such as in na de koffie (after the coffee) or na het werk (after work).
Learn We drinken koffie nadat we de machine uitzetten 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