Breakdown of Waarop heb je deze plank vastgemaakt?
hebben
to have
deze
this / these
je
you (unstressed form of jij)
waarop
on what
de plank
the shelf / the board
vastmaken
to attach / to fasten
Questions & Answers about Waarop heb je deze plank vastgemaakt?
Why does the sentence start with Waarop instead of something like Op wat or Aan wat?
In Dutch, when you combine a preposition (like op or aan) with the word wat (what), it generally turns into waar + the preposition. So instead of saying "op wat" (on what), you must say waarop. This combination is called a pronominal adverb, and it's standard for referring to things.
Why is the ge- in the middle of vastgemaakt?
Vastmaken (to attach or to fasten) is a separable verb, made up of the prefix vast (fixed/secure) and the verb maken (to make). When forming the past participle of a separable verb, the ge- always goes right between the prefix and the verb stem.
The English translation says "attach... to". Why does this sentence use op (waarop) instead of aan (waaraan)?
Both are actually possible, but they give a slightly different visual picture. You would use waaraan (to what) if you are attaching the shelf to a wall or hanging it from something. You use waarop (on what) if you are attaching it onto a base, brackets, or another flat surface.
If I wanted to practice this lesson's grammar and ask "What did you attach this shelf to yourself?", where would zelf go?
You would place zelf after the specific object (deze plank) and before the past participle (vastgemaakt). The sentence becomes: Waarop heb je deze plank zelf vastgemaakt? This emphasizes that you did the attaching, rather than having someone else do it.
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