Breakdown of De vrouw aan wie ik het cadeau geef, is mijn nieuwe date.
ik
I
zijn
to be
de vrouw
the woman
wie
who
mijn
my
nieuw
new
het cadeau
the gift
geven
to give
aan
to (recipient)
de date
the date (romantic)
Questions & Answers about De vrouw aan wie ik het cadeau geef, is mijn nieuwe date.
Why do we use aan wie in this sentence?
In Dutch, when you combine a preposition (like aan) with a relative pronoun referring to a person, you must use wie. Since giving a present to someone translates using the preposition aan (iets geven aan iemand), we use aan wie (literally: to whom).
Can I separate aan and wie like we often do in English (The woman I give the present to)?
No, in Dutch relative clauses, the preposition and wie must stay right next to each other at the beginning of the clause. You cannot leave the preposition at the end of the sentence like you can in informal English.
Why is the verb geef at the end of the middle section?
The phrase aan wie ik het cadeau geef is a relative clause, which acts like a subclause. In Dutch subclauses, the conjugated verb (geef) always gets pushed to the very end of that specific clause.
Why does the second half of the sentence start directly with the verb is instead of zij is?
The entire first part of the sentence (De vrouw aan wie ik het cadeau geef) acts as the subject. Because Dutch main sentences follow the verb-second rule, the main verb (is) must come immediately after this long subject block. Adding zij would be repeating the subject!
Why is there an -e added to nieuw (nieuwe date)?
Date is an English loanword, and like most loanwords for people, it is a de-word (de date). When an adjective comes before a de-word noun, it gets an -e ending, even after a possessive word like mijn.
Learn De vrouw aan wie ik het cadeau geef, is mijn nieuwe date 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