Breakdown of Zij kleden zich altijd in een oude stijl.
een
a/an
zij
they
oud
old
in
in
altijd
always
zich kleden
to dress oneself
de stijl
the style
Questions & Answers about Zij kleden zich altijd in een oude stijl.
Why is zich in this sentence?
In Dutch, the verb zich kleden (to dress) is reflexive. While in English you just say 'they dress', in Dutch you literally have to say 'they dress themselves', which is why the reflexive pronoun zich is required here.
How do we know Zij means 'They' and not 'She'?
You can tell by the verb kleden, which is in its plural form. If the sentence was about 'She', the verb would be singular: Zij kleedt zich altijd in een oude stijl.
Why does oude get an -e ending after een?
Adjectives only drop the -e ending after een if the noun is a het-word. Since stijl is a de-word (de stijl), the adjective keeps its -e ending to become oude.
How would I change this sentence to say they dress in 'the same' style?
Because stijl is a de-word, you must use dezelfde. The phrase would become in dezelfde stijl (in the same style). You only use hetzelfde for het-words.
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