Breakdown of Het circus heeft ons voor het kostuum laten betalen.
hebben
to have
betalen
to pay
ons
us (object)
voor
for (on behalf of)
laten
to have (something) done
het circus
the circus
het kostuum
the costume
Questions & Answers about Het circus heeft ons voor het kostuum laten betalen.
Why does the sentence use the infinitive laten instead of the past participle gelaten?
This is the double infinitive rule. When a sentence is in the perfect tense (using heeft) and has a verb like laten (to let/make) combined with another verb (betalen), we do not use the past participle (gelaten). Instead, both verbs stay in their full infinitive form and go at the end of the sentence: laten betalen.
The translation says "made us pay", but doesn't laten usually mean "to let"?
Yes, laten often means "to let" or "to allow", but it is also used as a causative verb, meaning "to make" someone do something or "to have" a task done. Here, the circus "had us pay" or "made us pay" for the costume.
Why are both laten and betalen at the very end of the sentence?
In a standard Dutch sentence, the conjugated helping verb (heeft) takes the second position, while all other verbs are pushed to the end. Since this uses the double infinitive rule, both laten and betalen cluster together at the very end.
Do we use voor with betalen just like in English?
Yes! Just like saying "to pay for" in English, Dutch uses the preposition voor with the verb betalen when you mention what is being bought (voor het kostuum betalen).
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