Breakdown of Ik vraag of het helpt om me elke dag te focussen.
ik
I
helpen
to help
het
it
de dag
the day
vragen
to ask
te
to (infinitive marker)
om
in order to
of
if / whether
elk
each, every
zich focussen
to focus oneself
Questions & Answers about Ik vraag of het helpt om me elke dag te focussen.
Why is it me instead of zich in the infinitive clause?
The verb is zich focussen (to focus). Even though it is inside an infinitive phrase (om ... te focussen), the reflexive pronoun must match the person who is doing the action. Since the main subject is Ik (I), the reflexive pronoun becomes me.
Where exactly does the reflexive pronoun me go in an om ... te clause?
The reflexive pronoun normally goes right after om, before other details like time or place. Here, me comes immediately after om, followed by the time phrase elke dag (every day), and ends with te focussen.
Why is there a reflexive pronoun here when English just says 'to focus'?
In Dutch, the verb for focusing is inherently reflexive: zich focussen (literally 'to focus oneself'). You always have to include a reflexive pronoun (like me, je, or zich) when using this verb, even though we do not normally say it that way in English.
Why does the verb helpt come at the end of the of clause?
The word of (meaning 'if' or 'whether') introduces a subordinate clause. In Dutch subordinate clauses, the conjugated verb is pushed to the end. That is why helpt comes right before the new om ... te clause begins.
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