Questions & Answers about Heb jij ergens op gestemd tijdens de verkiezing?
Why is it ergens op instead of op iets for "for anything"?
When a preposition like op combines with iets (something or anything), Dutch changes it into a combination word (a pronominal adverb). Iets turns into ergens and moves in front of the preposition. So, op iets becomes ergens op.
Why does the Dutch sentence use op when the English translation says "for"?
Prepositions often do not translate word-for-word. In Dutch, the fixed verb phrase is stemmen op (to vote for). Because the verb requires op, the combination word must be ergens op.
Doesn't ergens normally mean "somewhere"?
Yes! On its own, ergens means "somewhere" or "anywhere". But when you attach a preposition to it (like op), it changes to refer to a thing instead of a place, meaning "something" or "anything".
Why is the past participle gestemd not at the very end of the sentence?
In the present perfect tense (heb ... gestemd), the past participle usually gets pushed to the end. However, prepositional phrases that give extra background details (like tijdens de verkiezing) are often allowed to come after it. It would also be completely correct to say: Heb jij tijdens de verkiezing ergens op gestemd?