Word
Dat is een goede manier van werken.
Meaning
That is a good way of working.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Dat is een goede manier van werken.
werken
to work
dat
that (het-words)
goed
good
van
from (possession, starting point) / made of
Questions & Answers about Dat is een goede manier van werken.
Why do we use Dat here instead of Die, since manier is a de-word?
When pointing something out using the verb zijn (to be), Dutch always uses the neutral pronouns dit (this) or dat (that). It does not matter if the noun that follows is a de-word or a het-word. Because you are saying "That is a...", you must use Dat is een....
Why does goede get an -e at the end here?
Manier is a de-word (de manier). When a de-word is preceded by the word een, the adjective in front of it always gets an -e added to the end.
In English, we say "working" with an -ing ending. Why does Dutch just use the infinitive verb werken?
Dutch does not have a direct equivalent to the English -ing form (the gerund) to turn a verb into an activity noun. Instead, you just use the full infinitive form of the verb, which is werken in this case.
Why do we use van (of) here?
Manier van is a fixed combination used to describe a general style or method of doing something. You use it directly with an infinitive verb, just like in the expressions manier van praten (way of talking) or manier van leven (way of living).