Questions & Answers about Af en toe eet ik een taart.
Why is the order eet ik instead of ik eet?
Dutch uses a strict verb-second rule in main clauses. Because the time phrase af en toe takes up the first spot in the sentence, the verb eet must come second. This pushes the subject ik right after the verb, which is called inversion.
What do the words in af en toe literally mean?
Word for word, it translates to "off and to". However, it is a fixed idiom that Dutch speakers use all the time to mean "now and then" or "occasionally".
Does een taart mean I am eating an entire cake?
Yes! By using een, you are literally saying you eat a whole cake. If you just want to say you eat cake in general, you would leave out the word een and just say ik eet taart. If you want a single slice, you would say een stuk taart.