Breakdown of Hoewel de leraar briljant is, vindt zelfs hij wiskunde soms moeilijk.
zijn
to be
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
soms
sometimes
moeilijk
difficult
vinden
to think / consider (hold an opinion)
hoewel
although
de leraar
the teacher (schoolteacher)
zelfs
even
briljant
brilliant
de wiskunde
the mathematics
Questions & Answers about Hoewel de leraar briljant is, vindt zelfs hij wiskunde soms moeilijk.
Why is zelfs placed right before hij?
Zelfs is a focus adverb, and in Dutch, it usually goes immediately before the word or phrase it emphasizes. Here, it emphasizes that even the teacher (the 'he' in the sentence) struggles, so it pairs directly with hij.
Why does the second part of the sentence start with the verb vindt?
The sentence starts with a subordinate clause (Hoewel de leraar briljant is). This entire clause takes up the first position of the overall sentence. Because Dutch is a 'verb-second' language, the main verb (vindt) must come right after the comma, before the subject (zelfs hij).
Is the subject of the second clause hij or zelfs hij?
The entire phrase zelfs hij acts as the subject. When you swap the order of the verb and subject (inversion) after a subordinate clause, the focus adverb sticks to the pronoun it modifies, so they stay together as one block.
Why is the verb is at the very end of the first clause?
The word hoewel (although) is a subordinating conjunction. Words like this introduce a subordinate clause, which pushes the verbs in that specific clause to the very end.
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