Breakdown of De baas wil ons allemaal motiveren.
willen
to want
de baas
the boss
ons
us (object)
allemaal
all (of them)
motiveren
to motivate
Questions & Answers about De baas wil ons allemaal motiveren.
Why is "all of us" translated as ons allemaal instead of using van (of)?
In Dutch, you don't translate "all of us" literally. Instead, you phrase it as "us all" (ons allemaal). When combining a personal pronoun with "all", the pronoun always comes first, immediately followed by allemaal.
Can I use al or alle instead of allemaal here?
No, you can't use al or alle directly with a standalone pronoun like this. Alle is used before a noun (like alle mensen for "all people"). When you want to say "all of [pronoun]", you must use the pronoun plus allemaal.
Does allemaal always have to stay right next to ons?
In a short sentence like this, yes. Allemaal generally sits in the middle of the sentence right after the pronoun it refers to. Placing it anywhere else here (like allemaal ons) would sound completely unnatural to a Dutch speaker.
Why does motiveren go at the very end of the sentence?
This is a classic Dutch word order rule that is always good to review: the conjugated modal verb wil (wants) takes the normal second position in the sentence, which forces the main action verb (motiveren) to move to the very end in its full infinitive form.
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